The Mealtime Prayer

When Uhde painted his large-scale religious works (Let the Little Children come unto Me) which were popular around 1900, they seemed to some, including the emperor, to be revolutionary in their approach. Biblical events are depicted in a contemporary setting; Christ appears as an individual. The social milieu is faithfully reproduced using the latest naturalistic techniques. There is no need for theological interpretation. The weight of the subject matter, however, means that there is a tendency to overlook both the fine play of light and shade in Uhde’s works and the rich tonal modulations of his highly sophisticated plein air paintings.