Gustav Wertheimer (1847–1902) was an Austrian painter, active mainly in Paris. He produced
history painting
History painting is a genre in painting defined by its subject matter rather than any artistic style or specific period. History paintings depict a moment in a narrative story, most often (but not exclusively) Greek and Roman mythology and Bible ...
s,
portraits
A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expressions are predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, personality, and even the mood of the person. For this re ...
, and
genre scenes
Genre art is the pictorial representation in any of various media of scenes or events from everyday life, such as markets, domestic settings, interiors, parties, inn scenes, work, and street scenes. Such representations (also called genre works, ...
.
Life
Gustav Wertheimer was born in Vienna on 28 January 1847. He trained under
Carl Mayer
Carl Mayer (20 November 1894 – 1 July 1944) was an Austrians, Austrian screenwriter who wrote or co-wrote the screenplays to ''The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari'' (1920), ''The Head of Janus'' (1920), ''The Haunted Castle (1921 film), The Haunted C ...
and
Joseph von Führich
Joseph von Führich (fully Josef Ritter von Führich) (9 February 1800 – 13 March 1876) was an Austrian painter, one of the Nazarenes.
Biography
He was born at Kratzau (today Chrastava) in Bohemia. Deeply impressed as a boy by rustic pict ...
at the
Academy of Fine Arts Vienna
The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna (german: link=no, Akademie der bildenden Künste Wien) is a public art school in Vienna, Austria.
History
The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna was founded in 1692 as a private academy modelled on the Accademia di Sa ...
from 1863 to 1867, and under
Wilhelm von Dietz at the
Academy of Fine Arts, Munich
The Academy of Fine Arts, Munich (german: Akademie der Bildenden Künste München, also known as Munich Academy) is one of the oldest and most significant art academies in Germany. It is located in the Maxvorstadt district of Munich, in Bavaria, ...
. He exhibited the large historical painting ''Nero während des Brandes in Rom'' ('Nero during the Fire in Rome') at the
1873 Vienna World's Fair
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[Schneider (2021)]
"Wertheimer, Gustav"
''AKL''. De Gruyter. Retrieved 27 April 2022.
In 1882 he moved to Paris, where he enjoyed his greatest success. ''Le repas des lions chez Pezon'' ('Lions Eating at Pezon'), exhibited in the
Salon
Salon may refer to:
Common meanings
* Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments
* French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home
* Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment
Arts and entertainment
* Salon (P ...
of 1886, received particular attention.
[Oliver, ed. (2011)]
"Wertheimer, Gustav"
''Benezit''. Oxford UP. Retrieved 27 April 2022. According to the ''Benezit Dictionary of Artists'', "His compositions take on a fantastic character, seeming to belong to the realm of dreams, and are tainted with anguish and anxiety."
Wertheimer was awarded medals at exhibitions in Amsterdam, London, New Orleans and Paris, and received honourable mentions at the Expositions Universelle of
1889
Events
January–March
* January 1
** The total solar eclipse of January 1, 1889 is seen over parts of California and Nevada.
** Paiute spiritual leader Wovoka experiences a vision, leading to the start of the Ghost Dance movement in the ...
and
1900
As of March 1 ( O.S. February 17), when the Julian calendar acknowledged a leap day and the Gregorian calendar did not, the Julian calendar fell one day further behind, bringing the difference to 13 days until February 28 ( O.S. February 15), 2 ...
.
He also participated in the last
Salon de la Rose-Croix in 1897.
Shortly after 1900, at the end of his life, the patrons abandoned him. He died of consumption in the
Hôpital Larisboisière on 24 August 1902, destitute and alone.
However, his obituary in the Viennese magazine ''
Sport & Salon'' was flattering:
In Vienna, one could only see relatively few works by the master in art exhibitions, since Wertheimer, if his pictures were not already sold off the easel, always sold them at the first exhibition in the Paris Salon."Bildende Künste"
''Sport & Salon.'' 6 September 1902. p. 21.
Selected works
* ''Nero während des Brandes in Rom'' ('Nero during the Fire in Rome'), 1873.
* ''Schiffbruch der Agrippina'' ('Shipwreck of Agrippina'), also called ''Tod der Agrippina'' ('Death of Agrippina'), 1874.
* ''Le repas des lions chez Pezon'' ('Lions Eating at Pezon'), 1886.
Gallery
File:Gustav Wertheimer - Der Schiffbruch der Agrippina.jpg, ''The Shipwreck of Agrippina'' (1874)
File:Gustav Wertheimer - Theresia Fritz im Alter von etwa 18 Jahren - 6070 - Österreichische Galerie Belvedere.jpg, ''Theresia Fritz'' (1879)
File:Gustav Wertheimer - The Kiss of the Siren - 76.27 - Indianapolis Museum of Art.jpg, ''The Kiss of the Siren'' (1882)
File:Gustav Wertheimer - Couple de lions.jpg, ''Couple of Lions'' (1901)
File:Gustav Wertheimer - Die Fechtstunde der Damen.jpg, ''The Women's Fencing Lesson''
File:Gustave-wertheimer-nu-à-la-peau-dours.jpg, ''Bear-skin Nude''
Notes
References
Primary sources
"Nero auf der Wiener Weltausstellung" ''
Wiener Sonn- und Montags-Zeitung
Wiener (from German: "Viennese") may refer to:
Food
* A Polish sausage (kielbasa) or "wenar"
* A Vienna sausage of German origin, named after the capital of Austria
* A hot dog, a cooked sausage, traditionally grilled or steamed and served in a ...
''. 10 March 1873. pp. 1–2.
"Theater, Kunst und Literatur" ''Deutsche Zeitung.'' 8 March 1873. pp. 8–12.
"Theater- und Kunstnachrichten" ''
Neue Freie Presse
''Neue Freie Presse'' ("New Free Press") was a Viennese newspaper founded by Adolf Werthner together with the journalists Max Friedländer and Michael Etienne on 1 September 1864 after the staff had split from the newspaper ''Die Presse''. It ex ...
.'' 14 July 1881. p. 8.
"Kunst-Nachrichten" ''Österreichische Kunst-Chronik''. Vol. VII, No. 30. 28 July 1883. p. 403.
"Theater und Kunst" ''Sport & Salon.'' 12 October 1901. p. 23.
"Bildende Künste" ''Sport & Salon.'' 6 September 1902. p. 21.
Secondary sources
* Oliver, Valerie Cassel, ed. (2011)
"Wertheimer, Gustav" In ''
Benezit Dictionary of Artists
The ''Benezit Dictionary of Artists'' (in French, ''Bénézit: Dictionnaire des peintres, sculpteurs, dessinateurs et graveurs'') is an extensive publication of bibliographical information on painters, sculptors, designers and engravers created ...
''. Oxford University Press. Oxford Art Online.
* Schneider, Ulrich (2021)
"Wertheimer, Gustav" In Beyer, Andreas; Savoy, Bénédicte; and Tegethoff, Wolf (eds.). ''Allgemeines Künstlerlexikon''. De Gruyter.
{{Authority control
1847 births
1902 deaths
19th-century Austrian painters
Artists from Vienna
Tuberculosis deaths in France
20th-century deaths from tuberculosis