Karl Ludwig Libay (Slovakian: Karol Ľudovít Libai; 13 May 1814/16,

Banská Bystrica Banská Bystrica (, also known by other #Etymology, alternative names) is a city in central Slovakia, located on the Hron River in a long and wide valley encircled by the mountain chains of the Low Tatras, the Greater Fatra, Veľká Fatra, and t ...

– 16 January 1888,

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

)Glocko, F.: ''Samuel Libay - život a dielo banskobystrického zlatníka.'' Banská Bystrica : Stredoslovenské múzeum, 2018, pgs.44-46 . was a Slovak lithographer, draftsman and painter.

Biography

His father, , was a silversmith and goldsmith. He began with the intention of becoming a goldsmith as well; serving an apprenticeship with his father from 1892 to 1832. That year, the Goldsmith's Guild promoted him to Journeyman. Two years later, aged only twenty, he achieved the status of Master. Shortly after, he went to Vienna to sharpen his skills, but his exposure to the cosmopolitanism there diverted his attention to a different kind of artistic endeavor. In 1835, he enrolled at the

Academy of Fine Arts The following is a list of notable art schools. Accredited non-profit art and design colleges * Adelaide Central School of Art * Alberta College of Art and Design * Art Academy of Cincinnati * Art Center College of Design * The Art Institute ...

. His teachers there included the portraitist, , Johann Nepomuk Ender,

Leopold Kupelwieser Leopold Kupelwieser (17 October 1796, Markt Piesting – 17 November 1862, Vienna) was an Austrian painter, often associated with the Nazarene movement. Biography He was the son of Johann Baptist Georg Kilian Kupelwieser (1760–1813), co-owne ...

(a friend of

Franz Schubert Franz Peter Schubert (; ; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical period (music), Classical and early Romantic music, Romantic eras. Despite his short life, Schubert left behind a List of compositions ...

), and the landscape painter,

Joseph Mössmer Joseph Mössmer (20 May 1780 – 22 June 1845) was an Austrian painter and instructor at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna. Born in Vienna, he began his artistic training in 1796 under Friedrich August Brand. Later, as an instructor at the Acade ...

. His first paintings were mostly landscapes and

vedute A ''veduta'' (; : ''vedute'') is a highly detailed, usually large-scale painting or, more often, print of a cityscape or some other vista. The painters of ''vedute'' are referred to as ''vedutisti''. Origins This genre of landscape originated ...

. After 1845, he was able to continue his studies with the assistance of a patron; Count . He loved to travel and created several lithographic albums of his travels throughout Europe. His first exhibition came in 1840, with views of Budapest. In 1848, he published a book with views of

Bad Ischl Bad Ischl (Austrian German ) is a spa town in Austria. It lies in the southern part of Upper Austria, at the river Traun in the centre of the Salzkammergut region. The town consists of the Katastralgemeinden ''Ahorn'', ''Bad Ischl'', ''Haiden ...

and, the following year, one of

Salzburg Salzburg is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020 its population was 156,852. The city lies on the Salzach, Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Austrian Alps, Alps moun ...

with scenes of the

Salzkammergut The Salzkammergut (, ; ) is a resort area in Austria, stretching from the city of Salzburg eastwards along the Alpine Foreland and the Northern Limestone Alps to the peaks of the Dachstein Mountains. The main river of the region is the Traun (r ...

region. From 1849 to 1850, he travelled from Bavaria to Southern Italy; painting views for

Archduke John of Austria Archduke John of Austria (, ; (or simply ''Nadvojvoda Janez''); 20 January 1782 – 11 May 1859), a member of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine, was an Austrian field marshal and imperial regent (''Reichsverweser'') of the short-lived German Emp ...

. A trip to Egypt from 1855 to 1856 resulted in an album of 45 color lithographs, for which he received an award from

Alexander von Humboldt Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Alexander von Humboldt (14 September 1769 – 6 May 1859) was a German polymath, geographer, natural history, naturalist, List of explorers, explorer, and proponent of Romanticism, Romantic philosophy and Romanticism ...

in 1857. A planned trip to the Americas was never realized, due to Von Humboldt's death. The first lithographs of his hometown appeared in 1852, when he made a lengthy return visit. Five years later, he returned again and focused on drawing castles; notably at Orava and

Zvolen Zvolen (; ; ) is a city in central Slovakia, situated on the confluence of Hron and Slatina rivers. It is famous for several historical and cultural attractions. It is surrounded by Poľana mountain from the East, by Kremnické vrchy from the ...

. During his visit in 1883, he also made sketches in

Sklené Teplice Sklené Teplice (, ) is a small spa village and municipality in Žiar nad Hronom District in the Banská Bystrica Region of central Slovakia. It is close to the historic town of Banská Štiavnica. History In historical records the village was me ...

and

Štrbské Pleso Štrbské pleso (, , , or ) is a picturesque tarn (lake), mountain lake of glacial origin and a top tourist destination in the High Tatras, Slovakia. It is the second-largest glacial lake on the Slovak side of the High Tatras, after Veľké Hi ...

. His last visits came in 1884 and 1886, when he made sketches on Mount Urpín. His last drawings were made in Salzburg, in 1887. On Christmas Eve, he always gave clothing and shoes to poor children. He left a ten-page will, which included a large donation to the Evangelical Elementary School in Banská Bystrica. Single and childless, he was given a modest funeral and, per his wishes, his heart was pierced. His original works may be seen at the

Slovak National Gallery The Slovak National Gallery (, abbreviated SNG) is a network of galleries in Slovakia. It has its headquarters in Bratislava. The gallery was established by law on 29 July 1949. In Bratislava, it has its displays situated in Esterházy Palace (' ...

, the , the

East Slovak Museum The East Slovak Museum () in Košice, Slovakia, is one of the oldest Slovak museums, founded in 1872. It is located in the Old Town borough of Košice, at ''Námestie maratóncov'' (Marathon Runners' Square). The museum was founded on 25 June 1876 ...

, the

Albertina The Albertina is a museum in the Innere Stadt (First District) of Vienna, Austria. It houses one of the largest and most important print rooms in the world with approximately 65,000 drawings and approximately 1 million old master prints, as well ...

and the

Hungarian National Gallery The Hungarian National Gallery (also known as Magyar Nemzeti Galéria, ), was established in 1957 as the national art museum. It is located in Buda Castle in Budapest, Hungary. Its collections cover Hungarian art in all genres, including the w ...

References

External links

Biography
@ the Salzburg Wiki {{DEFAULTSORT:Libay, Karl Ludwig 1810s births 1888 deaths 19th-century Slovak painters 19th-century Hungarian painters Slovak landscape painters Hungarian landscape painters Cityscape artists 19th-century Slovak lithographers 19th-century Hungarian lithographers 19th-century Slovak illustrators Academy of Fine Arts Vienna alumni People from Banská Bystrica

Biography

References

Further reading

External links