Anton Melbye 1818-1875 by Budtz Müller & Co

Daniel Herman Anton Melbye (13 February 1818, Copenhagen – 10 January 1875, Paris) was a Danish painter and photographer who specialized in maritime scenes. He was the brother of painters

Vilhelm Vilhelm is a masculine given name, the Scandinavian form of William and Wilhelm. Notable people with the name include: * Vilhelm Ahlmann (1852-1928), Danish-Swedish architect * Vilhelm Andersen (1864–1953), Danish author, literary historian and ...

and

Fritz Melbye Fritz Sigfred Georg Melbye (24 August 1826 – 14 December 1869) was a Danish marine painter, the brother of Anton Melbye and Vilhelm Melbye who were also marine painters. He traveled widely, painting seascapes, coastal and harbour scenes as wel ...

Biography

His father was a Royal Customs officer. He had originally planned on a naval career but, because of his

myopia Near-sightedness, also known as myopia and short-sightedness, is an eye disease where light focuses in front of, instead of on, the retina. As a result, distant objects appear blurry while close objects appear normal. Other symptoms may include ...

, was sent to learn shipbuilding instead.Biographical notes
(in Danish). @ Kunstindeks Danmark. His inclinations for music and art asserted themselves, however, and he left engineering school to learn the guitar. Melbye Eddystone 1846

He also wanted to be a marine painter and attended the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts for a year, in 1838, taking

C.W. Eckersberg Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg (2 January 1783 – 22 July 1853) was a Danish painter. He was born in Blåkrog in the Southern Jutland region of Denmark. He went on to lay the foundation for the period of art known as the Golden Age of Dan ...

as his mentor.Brief biography
(in Danish). @ Den Store Danske. By 1840, he was already exhibiting some seascapes that attracted the attention of the German art collector, Karl Friedrich von Rumohr. On his recommendation, Melbye accompanied King

Christian VIII Christian VIII (18 September 1786 – 20 January 1848) was King of Denmark from 1839 to 1848 and, as Christian Frederick, King of Norway in 1814. Christian Frederick was the eldest son of Hereditary Prince Frederick, a younger son of King Frederi ...

on his

corvette A corvette is a small warship. It is traditionally the smallest class of vessel considered to be a proper (or " rated") warship. The warship class above the corvette is that of the frigate, while the class below was historically that of the slo ...

for a voyage through the Baltic and North Seas. Soon after, he was invited to accompany the King on a voyage to Morocco, where he witnessed the Bombardment of Tangiers. In 1845, he applied to the Royal Academy for a travel scholarship, but was passed over. With the support of the King, he was awarded the money in 1846 and his painting of the Eddystone Lighthouse was purchased for the

Royal Collection The Royal Collection of the British royal family is the largest private art collection in the world. Spread among 13 occupied and historic royal residences in the United Kingdom, the collection is owned by King Charles III and overseen by the ...

. It also won the Thorvaldsen Medal. This brought a rush of orders that forced him to postpone his trip.

Years in Paris

He finally arrived in Paris in 1847 and remained through the Revolution; receiving a year's extension on his scholarship. His name soon became known in local articles circles and he remained there even longer. In 1853, he was given the chance to travel with a French expedition to Istanbul. For a time, he lived with the French Ambassador, Achille Baraguey d'Hilliers, and painted a portrait of Sultan Abdülmecid I. During these years, he also received a commission from Napoleon III and learned how to take

daguerrotypes Daguerreotype (; french: daguerréotype) was the first publicly available photographic process; it was widely used during the 1840s and 1850s. "Daguerreotype" also refers to an image created through this process. Invented by Louis Daguerre an ...

directly from Louis Daguerre, just before his death. Fregatten Jylland

He was married in 1857 and returned to Denmark the following year. Upon his arrival, he was named a member of the Royal Academy and awarded the

Order of the Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog ( da, Dannebrogordenen) is a Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single class known a ...

. In 1862, he became a Professor. During his later years, he divided his time between Copenhagen, Hamburg and Paris. Despite his great success, he was often frustrated that everyone he met referred to his picture of the lighthouse as his greatest painting. Worsening health gradually affected his ability to paint, so he turned to charcoal and chalk sketches. He died during a stay in Paris and was buried there. His paintings are realistic, often enhanced with dramatic light and weather effects (he was especially fond of portraying inclement weather), and show the influence of

Camille Corot Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot ( , , ; July 16, 1796 – February 22, 1875), or simply Camille Corot, is a French landscape and portrait painter as well as a printmaker in etching. He is a pivotal figure in landscape painting and his vast o ...

, who he met in Paris.

References

External links

ArtNet: More works by Melbye.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Melbye, Daniel Hermann Anton 19th-century Danish painters Danish male painters 19th-century Danish photographers Danish marine artists 1818 births 1875 deaths Pioneers of photography Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts alumni Recipients of the Thorvaldsen Medal Artists from Copenhagen Order of the Dannebrog 19th-century Danish male artists