Open daily. Always free.
The Strike of the Blacksmiths

The Strike of the Blacksmiths

On View

Not currently on view

Theodor Esser

The realist style of Theodor Esser was linked to a desire to reform society, giving his painting a didactic, and sometimes propagandistic, purpose. The viewer is forced by the composition in The Strike of the Blacksmiths (13.2.1) to sympathize with the striking factory workers in the foreground. Esser was active in Munich in the 1890s where he followed the lead of modern art rather than the impressionists.
Artist
Theodor Esser
(German, 1868 - 1937)
Title
The Strike of the Blacksmiths
Date
1892
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
68 1/2 x 90 in. Overall
Credit
Gift of William C. Brumder
Accession No.
13.2.1
Classification
Paintings
Geography
Germany

Related

ca. 1911/12-1913, Paul S. Reinsch (Madison, WI); 1913, sold by Paul S. Reinsch to William C. Brumder (Milwaukee, WI); November 1913, gifted to the University of Wisconsin-Madison; 1967, transferred to the Elvehjem Art Center [now called Chazen Museum of Art]

  • Dennis, James M. "Robert Koehler's The Strike: The Improbable Story of an Iconic 1886 Painting of Labor Protest." Madison, WI: The University of Wisconsin Press, 2011. pp. 134-136, fig. 49
  • Lewis, Beth Irwin. "Art for All: The Collision of Modern Art and the Public in Late Nineteenth-Century Germany." Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2003. pp. 43-44, no. 11
  • Elvehjem Museum of Art. "Handbook of the Collection." Elvehjem Museum of Art, University of Wisconsin-Madison. Madison, 1990. no. 100
  • Madison Art Association. "Collection of Paintings Owned by Paul S. Reinsch: Exhibition in the State Historical Library Building." Madison, WI: Madison Art Association, 1912. p. 11, no. 123
  • Milwaukee Free Press. "A Collection of Fine Paintings by Masters made by Prof. Rensch during his Recent Year's Residence in Europe." Jan. 19, 1913.

  • Collection of Paintings Owned by Paul S. Reinsch: The Madison Art Association, 9/26/1912–10/24/1912

The Chazen Museum of Art welcomes comments or inquiries about works in our collection. Please allow two–three weeks for a response. Chazen staff is not able to provide valuations or authentications and such inquiries cannot be answered.

"*" indicates required fields

Name*
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.