Alfons Walde

Two women in their Sunday best, deep in conversation on their way to mass, the little church of Aurach with its onion dome, picturesque farmhouses, a mountain backdrop, and a snow-covered landscape under a clear blue sky—these are the motif elements with which Walde creates an incomparably memorable image of "Winter in Tyrol." Under this title, the motif of the "Women on the Church Path" was also distributed as a postcard in his own art publishing house, founded in 1923. Undoubtedly, the reproduction as a fine art print accelerated the international success of Walde's "poster-like" winter motifs. The 1920s brought the "snow painter" of Austrian Modernism artistic ascent and popularity with an international clientele that valued Kitzbühel as a thriving tourist region. Walde's works became synonymous with the beauty of untouched winter landscapes and symbols of a carefree lifestyle in Tyrol. The painting, dated and titled "Women on the Church Path" by the artist himself on the back, shows the characteristic visual language that has lost none of its impact today: at the very top, a narrow strip of sky, a landscape bathed in sunlight under a thick blanket of snow with shimmering, impastoed white tones and striking blue shadow areas, in between the brown of the houses and a few, but all the more effective color accents and complementary contrasts—here in the turquoise apron of the woman on the left and the red cloak of the right figure. The motif of ladies in conversation is a frequently varied pictorial subject for Walde, which can be found in many of his works—such as in "Aurach bei Kitzbühel".