Go to sleep!

Gabriel von Max had a strong interest in the natural sciences throughout his life and was known for collecting fossils, skeletons and cultural artifacts. In 1859 Charles Darwin published his Origin of Species which was read by von Max. Shortly after reading Darwin's writings Gabriel von Max acquired his first capuchin monkey in 1870 and began breeding them at his estate. von Max was deeply interested in the similarities of the monkeys which he lived with and humans and he began painting them along with his already more respected religious works. The painting of monkeys was considered an inferior genre in the artworld and Von Max was soon titled “Affenmaler,” (monkey painter). Go to sleep! is believed to be a portrait of his daughter tenderly tending a sleepy baby monkey and shows the very personal relationship that the artist and his family had with the capuchins.