Johann Lucas Kracker, also Jan Lukáš Kracker or János Lukács Kracker (3 March 1717,

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. ...

- 1 December 1779,

Eger Eger ( , ; ; also known by other #Names and etymology, alternative names) is the county seat of Heves County, and the second largest city in Northern Hungary (after Miskolc). A city with county rights, Eger is best known for Castle of Eger, its ...

) was an Austrian-Czech painter of the late

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

period. His work consisted mostly of ceiling or wall

fresco Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...

es and altarpieces.

Life

His family originally came from

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

and his father, Josef Kracker (1683–1733), was a sculptor. He received his first training with Anton Hertzog (1692–1740) and continued at the

Academy of Fine Arts Vienna The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna () is a public art school in Vienna, Austria. Founded in 1688 as a private academy, it is now a public university. The academy is also known for twice rejecting admission to a young Adolf Hitler in 1907 and 1908. ...

after 1738, where his teachers included

Paul Troger Paul Troger (30 October 1698 – 20 July 1762) was an Austrian painter, draughtsman, and printmaker of the late Baroque period. Troger's illusionistic ceiling paintings in fresco are notable for their dramatic vitality of movement and their pale ...

and Michelangelo Unterberger. His first frescoes, created for the Schlosskirche St. Martin (

Graz Graz () is the capital of the Austrian Federal states of Austria, federal state of Styria and the List of cities and towns in Austria, second-largest city in Austria, after Vienna. On 1 January 2025, Graz had a population of 306,068 (343,461 inc ...

) in 1742, have not survived. Initially, he was employed at a workshop in

Brno Brno ( , ; ) is a Statutory city (Czech Republic), city in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. Located at the confluence of the Svitava (river), Svitava and Svratka (river), Svratka rivers, Brno has about 403,000 inhabitants, making ...

, later becoming independent and working throughout

Moravia Moravia ( ; ) is a historical region in the eastern Czech Republic, roughly encompassing its territory within the Danube River's drainage basin. It is one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The medieval and early ...

, briefly settling in

Znojmo Znojmo (; ) is a town in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 34,000 inhabitants. Znojmo is the historical and cultural centre of southwestern Moravia and the second most populated town in the South Moravian Region. The hi ...

, where he got married. He then moved on to

Upper Hungary Upper Hungary (, "Upland"), is the area that was historically the northern part of the Kingdom of Hungary, now mostly present-day Slovakia. The region has also been called ''Felső-Magyarország'' ( literally: "Upper Hungary"; ). During the ...

in 1754, where he worked in Šaštín and

Prešov Prešov () is a city in eastern Slovakia. It is the seat of administrative Prešov Region () and Šariš. With a population of approximately 85,000 for the city, and in total more than 100,000 with the urban area, it is the second-largest city i ...

(both now in

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

). From 1760 to 1761, he was in Prague where, despite objections from the Prague Painters' Guild, he executed frescoes at the Church of St. Nikolaus in Malá Strana. From 1762 to 1764, he painted at the Monastery and the

Premonstratensian The Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré (), also known as the Premonstratensians, the Norbertines and, in Britain and Ireland, as the White Canons (from the colour of their habit), is a religious order of canons regular in the Catholic Chur ...

Church in

Jasov Jasov (; ) is a small town and municipality in Košice-okolie District in the Kosice Region of eastern Slovakia. It is one of several towns in Bodva, Bodva Valley. Other towns in Bodva Valley include: Lucia Baňa, Lucia Bania, Metzenseifen, Medz ...

. In 1767, he settled in Eger. Bishop commissioned him to do work for the Diocese of Eger and at the Bishop's properties. Three years later, he created the altarpiece for the "Minoritenkirche" ( Franciscan Church) and in 1777 he produced his masterpiece depicting the

Council of Trent The Council of Trent (), held between 1545 and 1563 in Trent (or Trento), now in northern Italy, was the 19th ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. Prompted by the Protestant Reformation at the time, it has been described as the "most ...

at the Líceum. He remained in the Bishop's service for the rest of his life, although he occasionally travelled to execute small commissions elsewhere.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kracker, Johann Lucas 1717 births 1779 deaths Austrian painters Austrian male painters Czech painters Czech male painters Religious art

Life

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Further reading

External links