(Man Smoking a Pipe)

Hedwig Oehring

This is one of Hedwig Oehring's typical genre images - a Bavarian man enjoying a smoke and a stein. Oehring focuses on the complexities of the sitter's facial expression and the creases and ruddiness of a life well lived. She keeps his clothing simple and the surrounding interior undecorated.

Oehring painted this on an oak panel which has a U.S. Customs label on the verso identifying the work as "Fine Art" with a serial number "1644." The carved oak frame, possibly the original, shows signs of wear in harline cracks, but remains overall sturdy.

Hedwig Ohring (Oehring) was a prolific painter, born in Munich, Germany in 1855. Despite a seemingly successful career, we could find little additional information about her life and education.