Lot 2298A Dα

"Halskrausenbilder" (Ruff portraits), are mainly reminiscent of 17th century Dutch painting, but suddenly reappear in the works of Leibl's circle in the 19th century, when these collars had long since ceased to be worn. It was above all in the powerful and fresh paintings of Frans Hals that these painters found their inspiration, apparently from a purely painterly and aesthetic standpoint. Leibl himself explored the subject most convincingly, and his "Cocotte" (Wallraf-Richartz-Museum, Cologne), painted in Paris in 1869, is undoubtedly the most important of these "ruff portraits", alongside his "Boy with a Ruff" from the Germanisches Nationalmuseum (ill. 1). The latter is stylistically very close to the present work, which remained lost for many years. The Nuremberg painting is dated around 1869/70, and this period of origin that can therefore also be assumed for the present piece.

These were decisive years in Leibl's artistic development. In 1869 he had travelled to Paris, but had to return to Munich prematurely after six months due to the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War. Surprisingly, however, it was during these few months in Paris that Leibl consolidated his personal style. It was here that he developed his spirited, dense brushwork, which he had admired above all in the works of Frans Hals (for more on this see R. Neuhaus: Bildnismalerei des Leibl-Krieses, 1953).

This painting once belonged to Leibl's fellow artist Wilhelm Trübner, who painted a very similar "ruff portrait".