"Place in the Kitchen: Country Spouse"

(1832 Wiedensahl – 1908 Mechtshausen) "A Place in the Kitchen with a Rural Spouse" (also known as "A Place in the Kitchen" or "Room with Farmers in Red Jackets"). In the kitchen, depicted by the artist mainly in earthy, brown, and gray tones with quick brushstrokes and barely illuminated, stands a farmer with a large jug. Behind him, as a background figure, is the farmer’s wife in a red blouse. The work reflects the direct influence of 17th-century Dutch-Flemish painters such as Adriaen van Ostade, Isaac van Ostade, and David Teniers. Busch studied from 1851 to 1853 at the Düsseldorf Art Academy, and then at the Antwerp Academy, where he enthusiastically studied the works of the old masters in the original. The Antwerp period and his knowledge of 17th-century Dutch-Flemish painting, which deeply influenced him, formed the basis of Busch’s work as an artist. The main motifs of his mostly small paintings are rural scenes with peasant figures, the so-called "Paintings in Red Jackets." The present painting also arose during Busch’s engagement with this theme. Oil on paper, mounted on a thin wooden panel. On the reverse is a label with a certificate of authenticity from Professor Frau Nöldecke: "I confirm that the painting 'A Place in the Kitchen' by Wilhelm Busch was painted by him and has been in my possession since his death. Verden, April 20th (19)22, Professor Frau Nöldecke." Label from the Georg Schäfer Collection, Schweinfurt, with inventory number 3809971. 20.3 cm x 24.7 cm. Framed. Literature/catalogue raisonné: Hans Georg Gmelin, Wilhelm Busch as an Artist, Berlin 1980, number 338 with illustration. Provenance: Elisabeth Nöldecke, née Koch (1871–1952), wife of Busch’s nephew Adolf Nöldecke (1865–1919), Verden 1922; Georg Schäfer Collection, Schweinfurt (label on reverse); Special auction of the Schäfer Collection at Neumeister, Munich, February 27, 1999, lot 43; Private collection, Westphalia.