23/06/2026
at euroart- Dachau
Adolf Hölzel: "Im Biergarten zur Alten Schießstätte", 1891
With temperatures soaring across Europe right now, this painting could not feel more relevant — sometimes the best response to a heatwave hasn't changed in over 130 years: find some shade, sit down, and order a cold beer!
Adolf Hölzel (1853–1934) painted this scene in 1891 in Dachau, where he had settled with his family just a few years earlier, becoming one of the very first artists to make the town his home. What we see today is exactly the same gentle ritual that still plays out across Bavaria every summer afternoon: dappled light filtering through chestnut trees, wooden benches, an umbrella resting against the table, friends gathered in quiet conversation. Some things truly never change.
When Hölzel lost his fortune that had been invested in his family's business, it became the push he needed to open his own painting school — the first and most important in Dachau. Hölzel went on to form, together with his friends Ludwig Dill and Arthur Langhammer, the artistic circle known as "Neu-Dachau", helping turn the town into one of the most important artists' colonies in Germany. Years later, he would even take his first experimental steps toward abstract painting — years ahead of Kandinsky.
But on this particular day, captured forever in oil paint, none of that mattered yet. Just shade, good company, and a cool drink on a hot afternoon. Sound familiar? 🍻🌳
