Max Slevogt, The Prodigal Son, 1899
A Study Guide by Lee Magness
Max Slevogt was a German painter (1868-1932) who spanned realism and impressionism as the world of European art evolved at the end of the 19th and into the 20th centuries. He lived mainly in Germany but studied and traveled in Paris and Italy and Egypt. In Paris he became enamored of the work of Manet, an influence that brightened his otherwise dark German palette and nudged him toward the impressionist style.
Use the observations and questions below to guide your encounter with Slevogt's work.
Use the observations and questions below to guide your encounter with Slevogt's work.
Encountering the Prodigal Son in the Art of Max Slevogt
Reflection
1) This painting is a triptych, a painting with three panels, each displaying a different scene. Triptychs have been
widely used throughout the history of Christian art. What is the advantage of using a triptych?
2) Identify the three scenes in this triptych. Which scene is the most important? How did the artist signal its
importance?
3) Study the left panel. What features do you notice? What does this panel suggest about the experience of the
younger son in the far country?4) Study the right panel. What features do you notice? What does this panel suggest about the experience of the
younger son in the far country?
5) Study the central panel. What features do you notice? What does this panel suggest about the father and the
younger son at the time of the reunion? What about the presence of the third figure?
6) Think about the artist's use of light, dark, and color.
Response
Write a short essay sharing your interpretation of the painting or write a short meditation on the meaning of the
parable as illustrated by this painting.
An Interpretation ~
Slevogt’s "Prodigal Son" is a triptych which mixes realism and impressionism. The left panel offers a typical depiction of the prodigal living extravagantly (and sinfully?) in the far country. The scene is Asian, a common suggestion of the far country (compare Tissot). A geisha in a beautiful robe and with rich hair sits demurely at the table with the golden clad prodigal while a dancer raises her arms provocatively in the background.
The right panel is as stark and realistic as the left is colorful and impressionistic. The destitute prodigal, nearly naked, bent, limp, from exhaustion, from hunger, slumps in his desolation, having reached the nadir of his experience in the far country. We see him bowed in shame with nowhere to turn but home, as difficult as that may be.
The central panel portrays the prodigal’s return. He opens the door to the richly adorned room where sit his richly robed father and his elder brother. The prodigal in contrast is filthy, ragged, unkempt, and most of all emaciated. He lifts his hand not in a gesture of greeting, but in one of self-protection, unsure of his welcome. The father pivots in surprise, his body coiled to spring upon his lost son, his arms primed for embrace. The elder son stands stiff, unmoving and unmoved.
The most meaningful features of this painting to me are the son who sits in his dark desolation, in his physical and spiritual nakedness, and the father who instantly and instinctively stands to welcome his long lost son. The depth of despair and the height of joy, caught on canvas brushed with melancholy and mercy—these are the two pictures indelibly painted on our hearts as we read the parable of the Prodigal and internalize the message of the Master.
Reflection
1) This painting is a triptych, a painting with three panels, each displaying a different scene. Triptychs have been
widely used throughout the history of Christian art. What is the advantage of using a triptych?
2) Identify the three scenes in this triptych. Which scene is the most important? How did the artist signal its
importance?
3) Study the left panel. What features do you notice? What does this panel suggest about the experience of the
younger son in the far country?4) Study the right panel. What features do you notice? What does this panel suggest about the experience of the
younger son in the far country?
5) Study the central panel. What features do you notice? What does this panel suggest about the father and the
younger son at the time of the reunion? What about the presence of the third figure?
6) Think about the artist's use of light, dark, and color.
Response
Write a short essay sharing your interpretation of the painting or write a short meditation on the meaning of the
parable as illustrated by this painting.
An Interpretation ~
Slevogt’s "Prodigal Son" is a triptych which mixes realism and impressionism. The left panel offers a typical depiction of the prodigal living extravagantly (and sinfully?) in the far country. The scene is Asian, a common suggestion of the far country (compare Tissot). A geisha in a beautiful robe and with rich hair sits demurely at the table with the golden clad prodigal while a dancer raises her arms provocatively in the background.
The right panel is as stark and realistic as the left is colorful and impressionistic. The destitute prodigal, nearly naked, bent, limp, from exhaustion, from hunger, slumps in his desolation, having reached the nadir of his experience in the far country. We see him bowed in shame with nowhere to turn but home, as difficult as that may be.
The central panel portrays the prodigal’s return. He opens the door to the richly adorned room where sit his richly robed father and his elder brother. The prodigal in contrast is filthy, ragged, unkempt, and most of all emaciated. He lifts his hand not in a gesture of greeting, but in one of self-protection, unsure of his welcome. The father pivots in surprise, his body coiled to spring upon his lost son, his arms primed for embrace. The elder son stands stiff, unmoving and unmoved.
The most meaningful features of this painting to me are the son who sits in his dark desolation, in his physical and spiritual nakedness, and the father who instantly and instinctively stands to welcome his long lost son. The depth of despair and the height of joy, caught on canvas brushed with melancholy and mercy—these are the two pictures indelibly painted on our hearts as we read the parable of the Prodigal and internalize the message of the Master.
