Cabinet exhibition
28th February to 22th November 2025
Wilhelmshöhe Palace

Johann August Nahl the Younger came from the well-known artist family Nahl. After studying in France, England, and Italy, he worked in Kassel from 1793, where he later became the director of the art academy. He died almost 200 years ago.

In his honor, the Old Masters Picture Gallery dedicates a cabinet exhibition that focuses on one of his most significant works: The Origin of the Red Rose. When Venus rushes to help her beloved Adonis, she accidentally steps on a rose thorn, causing the blood of the goddess to turn the previously white roses red. This ancient story has been depicted since the Renaissance. The goddess is usually shown crouching, either pulling out the thorn herself or with Cupid assisting her.

Nahl connected the story of the origin of the red rose with the common Renaissance type of the reclining or sleeping Venus. The result is a reclining goddess who appears completely relaxed, even though she is performing a complicated turn. While her upper body faces the viewer, her legs are lightly crossed and the wounded leg is bent upwards, allowing Cupid to easily remove the thorn. Emotions or drama are absent, replaced by a classicist calmness that aims for an almost sculptural symmetry of the ideal female body.

The cabinet exhibition brings together for the first time all the preserved versions and preliminary studies on the subject. This includes some drawings made by Nahl's daughter Clementine. Her artistic work has been completely unknown until now.