Artwork

The countesses Elisabeth, Christiane and Marie Karoline Thun-Hohenstein-Klösterle

The countesses Elisabeth, Christiane and Marie Karoline Thun-Hohenstein-Klösterle is an unspecified painting by the Rococo painting artist Heinrich Füger. It dates from 1794 and is held in the collection of the Gemäldegalerie Berlin. Created in 1794 by the German painter Heinrich Friedrich Füger, this group portrait presents three members of the Thun‑Hohenstein family.

About this work

Overview

Created in 1794 by the German painter Heinrich Friedrich Füger, this group portrait presents three members of the Thun‑Hohenstein family. Executed in a rococo idiom, the canvas now belongs to the Gemäldegalerie in Berlin and exemplifies Füger’s blend of portraiture and classicist sensibility.

Subject & Meaning

The work depicts the sisters—Maria Elisabeth, Maria Christina and Marie‑Caroline—each seated side by side on a plush red settee. Their attire, ranging from a blue dress with a white shawl to a pale green gown and a pink dress crowned with a tiara, signals aristocratic status and the fashion of late‑18th‑century Austrian nobility.

Technique & Style

Füger employs a delicate chiaroscuro, allowing a soft, luminous glow to illuminate the women’s faces while the surrounding space recedes into shadow. The rendering of fabrics, ribbons in their high coiffures, and the subtle handling of light on the floral bouquets underscore the rococo emphasis on elegance and texture.

History & Provenance

Commissioned for the Thun‑Hohenstein household, the painting remained in private hands before entering the Berlin collection in the early 20th century. Its acquisition by the Gemäldegalerie reflects the museum’s focus on German classicism and the preservation of portraiture from the period.

Artist & collection

Artist

Heinrich Füger

Heinrich Friedrich Füger (8 December 1751 – 5 November 1818) was a German portrait and historical painter and one of the most important German representatives of classicism.