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Hugo Kauffmann: Catalogue of the 34 Most Famous Paintings
Updated October 2026 · ranked by our popularity score (searches, visits and orders for each work) · 34 works by Hugo Kauffmann in our catalogue
Summary
Dead Hare (1869) is recorded as the most famous painting of Hugo Kauffmann; it is held by the Bavarian State Painting Collections, Munich. Dead Fox (1869) and Study Head of an Old Woman (1869) occupy the second and third entries. Of the 34 works by Hugo Kauffmann recorded in the catalogue, the 34 best known are listed below, each entry with its date, the holding museum and a note on the work.
1844 – 1915, Hamburg
Most works: Bavarian State Painting Collections
Entries 1 to 10: the most famous Hugo Kauffmann paintings
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Hugo Kauffmann, further entries: 11 to 34
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"Public sale"1887
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gipsies in an inn1887
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two men and a girl sitting in an inn1887
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Interior with Young Man and Girl in Peasant Costume1911
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Rural Couple1906
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A conversation1915
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After School1915
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Postillion Im Wirtshaus
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A Good Beer
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Dead Hare1869 · Bavarian State Painting Collections
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The Village Fiddler1869 · Bavarian State Painting Collections
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PeasantBavarian State Painting Collections
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A Bad Beer
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Besuch Des Schaustellers Dazogard
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Lighting The Lantern
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Junges Mädel
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Two Men Against A Wall
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The Apple of His Eye
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Playing Soldiers
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A Peasant Girl
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The Sweetheart
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The Old Hunter
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A Peasant
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Two Men with their Dogs
"Public sale"1887
12gipsies in an inn1887
13two men and a girl sitting in an inn1887
14Interior with Young Man and Girl in Peasant Costume1911
15Rural Couple1906
16A conversation1915
17After School1915
18Postillion Im Wirtshaus
19A Good Beer
20Dead Hare1869 · Bavarian State Painting Collections
21The Village Fiddler1869 · Bavarian State Painting Collections
22PeasantBavarian State Painting Collections
23A Bad Beer
24Besuch Des Schaustellers Dazogard
25Lighting The Lantern
26Junges Mädel
27Two Men Against A Wall
28The Apple of His Eye
29Playing Soldiers
30A Peasant Girl
31The Sweetheart
32The Old Hunter
33A Peasant
34Two Men with their Dogs
Principal subjects in the work of Hugo Kauffmann
The four subjects most frequently represented among these works, each with its best-known example.
Drink 2 works
Hugo Kauffmann: holding museums
The museum that holds the most of the paintings on this page.
| Museum | City | Works by Hugo Kauffmann | Paintings from this list |
|---|---|---|---|
 Bavarian State Painting Collections |
Munich | 9 | Dead Hare, Dead Fox, Study Head of an Old Woman |
Decade index: the principal Hugo Kauffmann painting of each
Works per decade
Select a decade to display its principal painting.
Questions frequently consulted on Hugo Kauffmann's paintings
What is the best-known work of Hugo Kauffmann?Display the answer
Dead Hare (1869), Bavarian State Painting Collections, Munich. The following entries are Dead Fox (1869) and Study Head of an Old Woman (1869).
How old was Hugo Kauffmann in the year of Dead Hare?Display the answer
25 years: Hugo Kauffmann was born in 1844 and Dead Hare is dated 1869.
What are the ten best-known works by Hugo Kauffmann?Display the answer
Dead Hare, Dead Fox, Study Head of an Old Woman, Peasant Maid at the Stove, Bowling Alley, Hunter with Dog in the Wirtshaus, Quarreling Peasants, Peasant drinking beer, young couple in Bavarian costume and Inn Scene with Magician. The list above records the date and holding museum of each.
How many works by Hugo Kauffmann does the catalogue record?Display the answer
The catalogue records 34 works by Hugo Kauffmann, dated between 1869 and 1915.
Where are the principal works of Hugo Kauffmann held?Display the answer
Principally in Bavarian State Painting Collections (Munich). The museum table above gives the full distribution.
During which period did Hugo Kauffmann produce the best-known works?Display the answer
In 1880s: 6 of the 34 works listed on this page are dated to that period, including Quarreling Peasants.
What are the earliest and latest best-known works by Hugo Kauffmann?Display the answer
The earliest dated work listed here is Dead Hare (1869); the latest is A conversation (1915).
Which paintings by Hugo Kauffmann does the Bavarian State Painting Collections hold?Display the answer
Dead Hare, Dead Fox and Study Head of an Old Woman are among the 9 works on this page in the collection of the Bavarian State Painting Collections, Munich.
Biography of Hugo Kauffmann
The Soul of the Munich School: The Life and Art of Hugo Wilhelm Kauffmann
In the heart of nineteenth-century German art, few painters captured the quiet dignity of the common man as poignantly as Hugo Wilhelm Kauffmann. Born in Hamburg in 1844, Kauffmann’s journey was one of profound movement—not just across the geographic landscapes of Germany and France, but through a deepening emotional maturity that would eventually define his place within the prestigious Munich School. While his early years were rooted in the traditions of his father, Hermann Kauffmann, it was his rigorous training under masters such as Jakob Becker and Johann Nepomuk Zwerger that provided him with the technical foundation necessary to translate the mundane into the monumental. His artistic evolution was a deliberate departure from the rigid academicism of his era, seeking instead a truth found in the textures of everyday existence.
Kauffmann’s aesthetic sensibility was deeply informed by the atmospheric weight of Romanticism. The haunting, psychological landscapes of Caspar David Friedrich left an indelible mark on his psyche, teaching him that light and shadow could serve as vessels for human emotion. As he moved through the artistic hubs of Düsseldorf and Paris, his style began to coalesce into a unique form of realism. He did not merely observe; he empathized. This empathy became the cornerstone of his genre paintings, where the bustling atmosphere of a Bavarian tavern or the weary posture of a laborer was rendered with a precision that felt both intimate and universal. His brushwork, often described as loose yet remarkably controlled, allowed for a palpable sense of movement and life to breathe within the frame.
A Master of the Mundane and the Magnificent
The true brilliance of Kauffmann lies in his ability to elevate the ordinary. To look upon a Kauffmann painting is to enter a world where the small, often overlooked moments of life are granted eternal significance. He possessed an extraordinary talent for rendering the tactile qualities of his subjects—the rough grain of a wooden table, the heavy fabric of a peasant's tunic, or the soft glow of candlelight reflecting in a glass of beer. This commitment to verisimilitude was not just about visual accuracy; it was about capturing the very essence of the human condition, portraying individuals with all their inherent vulnerability and resilience.
His notable works serve as windows into a bygone era of German social life:
- Besuch Des Schaustellers Dazogard: A poignant exploration of Bavarian peasant life that captures the fleeting magic of a traveling performer's visit.
- The Musicians: A piece that showcases his ability to weave narrative and sound into a visual composition, highlighting the communal joy found in simple melodies.
- Portrait of a Man: Demonstrating his skill in character study, where every line on a face tells a story of lived experience.
Through these works, Kauffmann became a chronicler of the Munich School’s ethos, working alongside contemporaries like Wilhelm Leibl to reject idealized, hollow representations in favor of an unflinching honesty. His legacy is not found in grand historical epics, but in the quiet, enduring strength of the people he painted—the laborers, the villagers, and the dreamers who inhabited the corners of the German landscape.