(Andelfingen 1828–1904 Munich)
The organ grinder, old inscription on the reverse “Scene aus Oberhaslithal”, signed, inscribed and dated K. Grob München (18)99, oil on canvas, 124 x 92 cm, framed, (W)

The modestly-born painter Konrad Grob was able to complete an apprenticeship as a lithographer through financial support from the citizens of his hometown Adelfingen. After many years of lithography, which took him via St Gallen and Verona to Naples, where he worked for several years, in 1865 he decided to study painting in Munich. He was admitted to the class of Arthur Georg von Ramberg in 1870, who, like Ferdinand Piloty, represented a naturalistic style. His teacher encouraged Grob especially in genre painting, which he learned quickly. These appealing paintings soon made him famous in his homeland, Switzerland, and were very popular. He tried to turn to history painting several times, but was unsuccessful, and finally specialised in scenes of everyday life. His favourite motifs included depictions of the everyday life of Swiss peasants and their folk customs. He sketched these during his annual summer journeys into the Swiss mountain landscape. His preference for peasant life is discernible also in the present lot. All the details enjoy the same meticulous elaboration, and the children’s faces are filled with the joy of the musical soundtrack’s visit.