Die Blumenterrasse im Wannseegarten nach Norden

After purchasing a plot on the banks of Berlin’s Lake Wannsee in 1909, Max Liebermann commissioned a garden to be landscaped in keeping to his wishes. He selected the plants for the geometrically arranged flower beds according to painterly criteria, paid special attention to the effect of color and contrast, and ensured that it harmonized with the villa. In the years that followed, he captured the garden’s flower terrace in more than 60 works, making it one of his favorite landscape motifs. Red summer roses occupy the center of the loosely painted view to the north, while dense shrubbery and an otter sculpture by August Gaul (1869–1921) form the background. The branches filling the left of the picture contribute to the impression that we are observing the terrace from a randomly selected viewpoint. Employing vigorous brushstrokes, Liebermann elaborates the flowers, lawn, and bushes, attentively recording the play of light and shadow. But instead of seeking to convey an optical impression of the fleeting instant in the manner of the French Impressionists, he attempts to combine his individual observations into a strict composition.