Im Kreise der Familie

The Werbrun family in Cologne is celebrating the mother’s name day. And for the occasion she is wearing a festive silk dress. Standing around her are her five children, who are also in their Sunday best and have brought her presents. The heads of the mother and her children form a circle, with the figure of the mother at its centre. Johann Werbrun, the father, stands outside of it, yet still he towers over them as head of the family. He is linked here with St Severin’s Church in Cologne (upper left) to indicate the place where he worked: he was the owner of a starch factory and a grocery in the city. As an example of bourgeois self-representation from the early 19th century, the painting embodies the family ideals of the »Biedermeier«, not least the clear-cut division of the roles between husband and wife.