Norbertine Bresslern-Roth

"Zum Wasser" ("To the Water") shows a group of antelopes who want to quench their thirst at a flowing stream. As is clear in this painting, the animal painter Norbertine Bresslern-Roth is not only a master in capturing the posture and movement of the animals she despicts, but also applies skilful techniques to guide the direction in which the viewer "reads" the painting. Thus, the movement of the herd describes a dynamic arc from the upper right to lower right of the picture. With deep empathy and skilful observation, she highlights the characteristics of the antelopes, documenting both their gracefulness and their cautious wariness as they make their way to th refreshing water. Again, the muscles of their torsos and backs are indicative of the speed with which they flee from thei enemies.

She trained her gift of precise observation during her free time in Vienna, which she spent almost exclusively at Schönbrunn Zoo. She created numerous studies in front of the living models there. In creating her pictorial worlds, Bresslern-Roth drew on this devoted observation of the animals and her resulting knowledge of their characteristics and typical movements, as well as her deep sense of connection with animals in general, with eventually made her one of the most famous animal painters of her time.