Many of the views of the foothills of the Alps from Lier's hand were primarily created around Lake Starnberg. Lier, who studied in Munich with Richard Zimmermann and Eduard Schleich, traveled to Paris in 1861 to become acquainted with the latest developments in landscape painting. He he was not very enthusiastic while he was there, but after his return to Germany, the impressions of such a simple, unaffected approach as the Barbizon School had an even stronger effect. The landscape painting of the mid-19th century, already characterized by increasing realism, thus moved more and more out of the studio into the open air, foreshadowing Impressionism. Fundamental to Lier's work is a harmonious tonality, which in the present work is determined by a bright, warm and summery yellow against the hazy transparent blue of the lake and the sky. The imposing arching cloud formations show his interest in weather phenomena and atmosphere. The landscape is enlivened by the fishermen, who go beyond mere staffage, but without wanting to emphasize a social realist aspect. With landscapes still characterized by a certain romanticizing realism, in the transition to a pre-impressionism interest in light and atmosphere, Lier became a formative figure in Munich landscape painting. [KT]