Twilight on the Marsh, 1905

The German artist Ludwig Dill initially studied architecture before devoting himself entirely to painting from 1872. He travelled extensively to France, Switzerland, Italy and Belgium. In 1892 he was one of the co-founders of the Secession in Munich. Around that time Dill decided to concentrate purely on landscape painting. He settled in Dachau, near Munich, where he found inspiration in the landscape of the surrounding moors. Ludwig Dill was not the only one to live in Dachau, as his neighbours included Arthur Langhammer and Adolf Hölzel. Inspired by the example of the French Barbizon school of painting they established the Neu-Dachau group in 1893. Dill created many atmospheric landscapes, often depicting water features and trees, sensitively executed in tempera and pastels.