Ferdinand Georg Waldmüller
Josef Leopold Gierster, captain of the civil guard, with his wife, Katharina, née Kandl, and their five children

1838
Roland Collection

Josef Leopold Gierster (1800–1863), an ambitious, successful entrepreneur with an inn and brewery in Gaudenzdorf, near Vienna, and (later) captain in the civil guard, was throughout his life regarded as a committed and influential public figure. The roles of the family members are defined in the picture. His wife, Katharina, wearing a silver-grey satin gown, looks earnestly up at her husband. The two daughters, Elisabeth and Katharina, pose in admiration of their adored paterfamilias. Although exhibiting an impression of virtue, they are fashion-conscious, as revealed by the daughter’s elaborate looped plait. The two sons, August and Josef, look restrained and well-behaved. Next to a bouquet of roses stands a memorial picture of two deceased children. The crimson curtain, a set piece typical of court settings, serves to ennoble the background, emphasising the feudal character of the family portrait. At the same time, domestic intimacy is demonstrated by the physical closeness of hands touching. Little Caroline reaches tentatively for the rose, indicating the tactile quality of the various surfaces. Contemplation becomes a visual seduction, a sensual pleasure – here Waldmüller, who devoted great attention to current fashion, is outstanding.