Károly Koller, originally Karl (28 January 1838,

Hermannstadt Sibiu ( , , german: link=no, Hermannstadt , la, Cibinium, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Härmeschtat'', hu, Nagyszeben ) is a city in Romania, in the historical region of Transylvania. Located some north-west of Bucharest, the city straddles the Ci ...

- 26 November 1889,

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

) was an

Austro-Hungarian Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

photographer and painter.

Biography

His father was originally from

Tyrolia Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Em ...

, and his mother was from an upper-class family in Kronstadt. He attended the German grammar school in his hometown and studied with the drawing teacher, , (Sample
books.google.de
. with whom he was associated for many years; operating a joint studio.Konrad Klein: "Foto-Ethnologen. Theodor Glatz und die frühe ethnografische Fotografie in Siebenbürgen". In: ''Fotogeschichte'', Vol. 103, 2007, pp.23–45 From 1856 to 1859, he was enrolled at the and the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna. From 1859 to 1871, he worked as a drawing teacher in Bistritz, where he first developed his interest in photography. He pulblished two albums in 1862, togteher with Glatz, depicting notable

Transylvanian Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the A ...

personalities and

Trachten ''Tracht'' () refers to traditional garments in German-speaking countries and regions. Although the word is most often associated with Bavarian, Austrian, South Tyrolian and Trentino garments, including lederhosen and dirndls, many other German-s ...

(clothing). From 1866, he was a member of the Viennese . After Glatz died, in 1871, he closed the drawing school, but continued to operate the photography studio, opening branches in

Klausenburg ; hu, kincses város) , official_name=Cluj-Napoca , native_name= , image_skyline= , subdivision_type1 = Counties of Romania, County , subdivision_name1 = Cluj County , subdivision_type2 = Subdivisions of Romania, Status , subdivision_name2 ...

and Neumarkt. In 1873, he transferred the company to Glatz's niece, Camilla Asbóth (1838–1908), thereby making her the first independent female photographer in Transylvania. At the

1873 Vienna World's Fair ) , building = Rotunda , area = 233 Ha , invent = , visitors = 7,255,000 , organized = , cnt = , org = , biz = , country = Austria-Hungary , city ...

, he received awards for his portraits and chromophotography techniques. In 1874, he took photographs at the Royal Hungarian residence, Schloss Gödöllő, and was named Court Photographer. The following year, he opened a studio under his Hungarian name, in Budapest, where he employed over thirty people. The well-known artist,

József Borsos Jozsef Borsos (21 December 1821, in Veszprém – 19 August 1883, in Budapest) was a Hungarian people, Hungarian portrait painter and photographer; best known for his Genre art, genre paintings in the Biedermeier style. Life and work His father, ...

, also worked there for a time. He was able to attract a clientele that included many of the local Austro-Hungarian nobility, as well as members of the Imperial Family. A planned move to

Klagenfurt Klagenfurt am WörtherseeLandesgesetzblatt 2008 vom 16. Jänner 2008, Stück 1, Nr. 1: ''Gesetz vom 25. Oktober 2007, mit dem die Kärntner Landesverfassung und das Klagenfurter Stadtrecht 1998 geändert werden.'/ref> (; ; sl, Celovec), usually ...

was never accomplished. After his sudden death, while dining at a café, his longtime employees, Román Forché and István Gálfy, took over the firm; running it until 1908.

Selected photographs from the Koller studios

Ferenc József 1888-14.JPG, Emperor

Franz Joseph I Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I (german: Franz Joseph Karl, hu, Ferenc József Károly, 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the other states of the Habsburg monarchy from 2 December 1848 until his ...

Mária Valéria 1888.JPG, Archduchess
Marie Valerie Rudolf Crown Prince of Austria LOC.jpg,

Crown Prince Rudolf en, Rudolph Francis Charles Joseph , caption = Rudolf in 1887 , spouse = , issue = Elisabeth Marie, Princess Otto of Windisch-Graetz , house = Habsburg-Lorraine , father = Franz Joseph I of Austria , mother ...

Jászai Mari Koller.jpg, Actress

Mari Jászai Mari Jászai (born Mária Krippel; 24 February 1850, Ászár – 5 October 1926, Budapest) was a Hungarian actress. Life Mari Jászai 24 February 1850 in Ászár, Komárom county, as a daughter of a carpenter. She worked from age 10 as a maid ...

File:Andrássy Manó 1891-18.JPG, Artist

Manó Andrássy Count Manó Andrássy de Csíkszentkirály et Krasznahorka (3 March 1821 – 23 April 1891) was a Hungarian painter, caricaturist, collector, traveler, and politician. He was a member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. He served as a represe ...

Liszt Franz copy.jpg,

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt, in modern usage ''Liszt Ferenc'' . Liszt's Hungarian passport spelled his given name as "Ferencz". An orthographic reform of the Hungarian language in 1922 (which was 36 years after Liszt's death) changed the letter "cz" to simpl ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Koller, Karoly 1838 births 1889 deaths Hungarian artists Hungarian photographers Austro-Hungarian artists Academy of Fine Arts Vienna alumni Transylvanian-Saxon people People from Sibiu