In front of a protective hedge of foliage in the corner of a garden, Thoma presents a scene full of quiet intimacy and family harmony. A young man and two young women have gathered on the curved, elegant chairs and benches; nothing disturbs the evening atmosphere. In the foreground, close to the figures, the finely worked detail of three small sparrows emphasizes the peacefulness of the scene, free of any disturbance - an idyll that immortalizes the atmosphere in the picture, almost outside of time and space in its seclusion. The viewers are not noticed by the figures; one gets the feeling as if hiding behind a hedge and quietly turning one's gaze into the greenery so as not to disturb the gathering. Embedded in the retreat of the garden, Thoma shows the figures in front of dense foliage in full summer splendor. It is precisely this use of different shades of green that is typical of Thoma's work; it is one of the central characteristics of his coloring and shows the great, spiritually understood importance that Thoma attaches to nature and all living things. In June 1876, Thoma stayed in Schaffhausen in Switzerland near Lake Constance, where his mother and sister had moved for some time. It was there that he created the garden scene of which he himself wrote: "In Schaffhausen, I painted a garden landscape with three figures in my cousin's garden [..]" (Thoma, Im Winter des Lebens, 1919, p. 72). The theme of the society piece, or "conversation piece", is a rarity in Thoma's work. It refers to art historical traditions of the 18th century in England, but also in France, where Watteau's "fêtes galantes" elevated human togetherness to the content of the picture. The relationships between the figures depicted become a motif, as later revived by French Impressionism in particular. It is possible that Thoma also processed his impressions of his trip to Paris in April-May 1868, where he visited Gustave Courbet's studio and studied the paintings in the Louvre. In terms of motif and color, the off-white dress, the gray-brown and black accents, the back figure of the young woman is particularly reminiscent of Courbet's palette, but also refers to the early Impressionist painting of Edouard Manet, whom Thoma admired. In addition to landscapes set in a rural and simple milieu, a bourgeoisie note can be heard here, in which fine civilizing conventions are at work. The young man sits somewhat awkwardly opposite the two women; the viewer can see his gaze resting on the woman sitting opposite him. Meanwhile, the little sparrow on the ground observes the two others, not unencumbered by symbolic content. One might think of a young man in an encounter with the feminine, fascinated yet shy in his approach. In this large-format painting, Thomas's fine observations and atmospheric qualities, as well as his human empathy are particularly evident. [KT]