Mother in the Mountains, c. 1930

Alfons Walde (1891–1958) depicted his figure Mother in the Mountains, which fills the entire image plane, in a monumental and universal manner that is devoid of any individuality. Representing more of an archetype than a person, the motif is consistent with Walde’s idealized depictions of human figures. All the forms – the human bodies as much as the snowy winter landscape – appear equally simplified, large and three-dimensional. Capturing the powerful female figure holding a child from the front, Walde opens up the view, past the mother and child placed directly on edge of the mountain, into the bottom of the valley below. His pictorial composition dispenses with the classical division into fore-, middle-, and background. The snow-covered slope extends from a house, almost consumed by the deep snow, on the valley floor to the shoulders of the two figures and contrasts with the glowing alpine sky. The artist rendered the interplay of light and shadows with painterly finesse, a pastose paint application, expressive and detailed brushwork as well as delicate colors. Walde skillfully revisited the vermilion of the ankle-length skirt, the matte teal of the apron and the muted green ocher of the top in the reflections of light within the landscape.