The Lüftlmalerei in Oberammergau: A permanent open-air exhibition for more than 200 years.
Find out here what this art form is all about, what gives Oberammergau such a unique charm and also tells a lot about its rich history:
Discover the wonderful Lüftl paintings in Oberammergau
Lüftl painting is a form of facade painting. With this painting technique, the paint is applied to the still wet lime plaster. When the plaster dries, the color pigments combine with the lime. The painting itself becomes a hard and water-insoluble layer and is therefore durable and weatherproof.
Painting itself is particularly challenging for the artist for three reasons:
1. The plaster dries quickly. The artist is therefore under time pressure from the moment the lime is applied.
2. During the drying process the colors lighten, with some colors changing more than others. This process must be taken into account when painting. Mixing the colors requires a lot of experience.
3. Subsequent corrections are not possible.
Lüftl painting is a tradition that has existed in Oberammergau since around 1750. Like any other art form, this one is not static, but continues to develop. In the Baroque period, depictions of saints and biblical scenes were the most popular motifs. In this way, the personal protection needs and the piety of the Catholic population found expression.
Mock painting, i.e. imitating magnificent architectural elements on doors and windows, made simple town houses appear like magnificent royal residences. What for the modern Oberammergauer might be the latest model from a well-known Munich car manufacturer, was for the baroque Oberammergauer the 3D design of the house facade. The most impressive example of such a status symbol from back then is the Pilatus House.
While commissions for Christian motifs declined in the last century, the depiction of fairy tales became more popular. You can meet Puss in Boots while eating ice cream in the town center, or Little Red Riding Hood while taking a walk along Ettaler Straße.
The motifs that deal with Oberammergau's own village history also come from this time: the passion plays, village life and wooden sculpture can be found on some facades, for example on the “Lang sel. Erben” house on Dorfstrasse.
The origin of the term "Lüftlmalerei" has not yet been clearly explained. One possible explanation is Franz Seraph Zwinck (1748–1792), one of the most famous Lüftl painters from oberammergau.
Zwinck lived in a house that was then called "Zum Lüftl" which leads to two possible theories about the naming of this art form:
Was it the house that first got its name from Zwinck? It is possible that the locals called the building “Lüftl” because the most famous artist of this painting technique lived there. In this case, the house would have been named after Zwinck, and the term “Lüftl painting” would have been created independently of him.
Or did the house already have the name “Zum Lüftl” before? If this was the case, Franz Seraph Zwinck could have earned his nickname "Der Lüftl" from his parents' house. Due to his outstanding artistic work, the entire art form could have been named after him.
To date, it is not certain which of these approaches is correct, but one thing is certain: Franz Seraph Zwinck had a decisive influence on Lüftl painting and made her known far beyond Oberammergau.
With the painter who is native to Oberammergau Franz Seraph Zwinck (1748 - 1792) found an artistic personality who perfectly combined the art of representation and technology.
Zwinck became a formative figure Lüftl painter Oberammergau and the surrounding area. Examples of his work in the passion town of Oberammergau are three external facades of today's state forestry office on Ettaler Straße (the paintings on the west facade are more recent and come from Franz Hartmann), the Kölblhaus (opposite the forestry office), the Mußldomahaus on Lüftlmalereck, the Dedlerhaus and the Pilate's House.
Facade painting is widespread in Upper Bavaria and Tyrol. However, the undisputed centers are Mittenwald and Oberammergau. This is due, among other things, to the fact that these two communities are located on the former Rottstrasse, a trade route that in times past connected the two trading centers of Venice and Augsburg.
On the one hand, such roads brought prosperity: Mittenwald and Oberammergau carters had sole transport rights from Zirl in Tyrol to Schongau.
But Rottstrasse also brought with it cultural exchange: the inspiration for this painting technique came from Renaissance Italy.
Lüftl paintings can also be discovered in other places in the Ammergau Alps Nature Park. For example, the paintings on the schoolmaster's house in Unterammergau and the Jager property in Bad Kohlgrub are works by Franz Seraph Zwinck.
If you would like to go on a walk through the “picturesque” Oberammergau, we recommend the flyer “Local Tour - Tour of Oberammergau”. This takes you to the most famous sights in Oberammergau, including the most important Lüftlmaler motifs. The flyer is both here for download as well as at the Oberammergau Tourist Information Office.
