Fischer-Cörlin, Ernst Albert (1853-1932). Feeding the Kittens, 1893

Ernst Albert Fischer-Cörlin(1853 Körlin - 1932 Persante). Feeding the Kittens , 1893. Pencil on painting cardboard, 38 x 29 cm. Signed and dated by the artist at lower left "E[rnst] A[lbert] Fischer=Cörlin 1893".

- lightly stained, somewhat dusty and minimally foxed

- Little cat mother -

Daughter, mother and grandmother gather in the sunlight to feed a litter of kittens. The mother and grandmother hold the lively, playful animals in their arms, while the young girl feeds two of the four kittens with cookies. There is also a small bucket of milk and a bowl of milk. The women and the girl watch as the cute, still blind animals eat.

It is a scene taken from everyday life, but it also has an allegorical dimension, bringing maternal care into the representation. Three generations are represented, with the grandmother and the mother already mothers. They not only offer the kittens to the youngest, but also proudly observe the maternal care that the youngest gives to the kittens. Like the kittens, she will grow up and become a mother herself, so the image is also an allegory of life's ever-new beginnings. In keeping with this, the morning sun shines into the picture from the right. Fischer-Cörlin has masterfully worked out the quality of the light, with its light and dark areas, with the pencil used for hatching, which is particularly evident in the mother's face and the weave of her hat.

Although the half-timbered house in the background is uniquely laid out, it is not a sketch but a fully formulated pictorial idea and thus an independent work of art, signed and dated accordingly.

About the artist

Ernst Albert Fischer-Cörlin studied at the Berlin Academy of Arts under Eduard Daege and Julius Friedrich Anton Schrader. He then spent six years as a master student of Anton von Werner and was probably a member of Werner's staff for major commissions. After graduating from the academy, he worked as a freelance artist in Berlin.From 1877 to 1892 he participated in the exhibition of the Prussian Academy, from 1893 in the Great Berlin Art Exhibition, and also in the Great Dresden Art Exhibition. In addition, Fischer-Cörlin became a sought-after illustrator, whose pictures adorned several Stollwerck albums. He was also a virtuoso in the artistic design of baptismal certificates, diplomas and certificates of all kinds.

Selected Bibliography

Thieme-Becker. Allgemeines Lexikon der Bildenden Künstler von der Antike bis zur Gegenwart. Begründet von Ulrich Thieme und Felix Becker. Band 12: Fiori–Fyt, Leipzig 1916, S. 20.

Sauer. Allgemeines Künstlerlexikon. Die Bildenden Künstler aller Zeiten und Völker (AKL). Band 40, München u. a. 2004, S. 422.