Max Thalmann was a German Expressionist best known for his woodcut portfolios: Cathedral ("Der Dom"), Passion, and America. He lived in Germany throughout his life working as a bookbinder and self-employed artist. During the 1930's his work transitioned from woodcuts to drawings, watercolors, and pastels; most of which were inspired by a Nile River trip he took in 1930. Throughout the 1930's he also designed books for the Eugen Dieterich publishing house in Jena, Germany where he lived until his death in 1944.