Hans Thuar

The Boy from Cologne

Cologne, late nineteenth century. Two boys, nine and ten years old, play wild games in a new housing development on the edge of the city's beach. One is Hans Thuar; the other is August Macke. They are neighbors, bound by childhood energy and a shared fascination with the delicate Japanese woodcuts tucked away in Thuar’s father’s art collection. These thin rice sheets leave an impression that feels more profound than any church service.

The bond between them remains visible through years of letters and shared artistic experiments. While Macke eventually seeks an expression for an earthly paradise, Thuar’s focus shifts toward a deeper, existential relationship with the natural world. In Bonn, they work side by side, creating expressive works during a brief, intense period of proximity.

The Architecture of Dreams

Life in Ramersdorf brings a heavy stillness to Thuar's studio. With his wife and daughters occupied by their own business activities, the days stretch out in a repetitive loop. He complains of the eternally same impressions of an environment that never changes. This lack of variety becomes the catalyst for a departure from reality.

In the mid-1930s, Thuar begins to draw himself away from his surroundings through a series of small, intricate works titled Phantastische Welten (Fantastic Worlds). These are not mere landscapes but fragments of a reconstructed universe. He uses geographical maps as a foundation, providing coordinates or scale information on the reverse of some sheets, yet the surface of the paper tells a different story.

The technique involves:

• A detachment from the original motif.
• Free variations of terrain.
• Bizarre, intertwining lines that transform geography into surreal fantasy.

These drawings function as small escapes. They allow him to find a place within his own mind, setting boundaries and maintaining an overview even when the external world feels stagnant.

A Legacy in Paper and Oil

Thuar’s output spans various media, from the heavy presence of oil on canvas to the delicate precision of pencil on paper. His earlier works, such as Messdorflabel (1911) and Gefällter Baum (1912), show a developing hand. By 1922, his Self-portrait is held in the Städtisches Kunstmuseum in Bonn, documenting his presence through the decades.

His later drawings, like Phantastische Welt XIII (1935-36), represent the peak of his imaginative detachment. These works exist as a bridge between the physical maps of the earth and the internal landscapes of a man seeking to escape the monotony of his daily life.