Teodor Ilić Češljar ( sr-cyr, Теодор Илић Чешљар; 1746−1793) was a Serbian late baroque painter from

Vojvodina Vojvodina ( ; sr-Cyrl, Војводина, ), officially the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, is an Autonomous administrative division, autonomous province that occupies the northernmost part of Serbia, located in Central Europe. It lies withi ...

(then part of the

Austrian Empire The Austrian Empire, officially known as the Empire of Austria, was a Multinational state, multinational European Great Powers, great power from 1804 to 1867, created by proclamation out of the Habsburg monarchy, realms of the Habsburgs. Duri ...

) best known for being the creator of the Royal Doors of the Church in Ostojićevo.

Biography

Češljar was born in 1746 in Čurug and died on November 20, 1793, at age 47 in

Bačko Petrovo Selo Bačko Petrovo Selo ( sr-cyr, Бачко Петрово Село; Hungarian language, Hungarian: ''Péterréve'', German language, German: ''Batschko Petrovo Selo'') is a village located in the Bečej Municipality, in the South Bačka District of ...

(both now in

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

). It is assumed that he learned to paint from famous masters of

Timișoara Timișoara (, , ; , also or ; ; ; see #Etymology, other names) is the capital city of Timiș County, Banat, and the main economic, social and cultural center in Western Romania. Located on the Bega (Tisza), Bega River, Timișoara is consider ...

and

Novi Sad Novi Sad ( sr-Cyrl, Нови Сад, ; #Name, see below for other names) is the List of cities in Serbia, second largest city in Serbia and the capital of the autonomous province of Vojvodina. It is located in the southern portion of the Pannoni ...

, where he lived in 1769. His first known work was a painting of four evangelists on church belfry in

Buda Buda (, ) is the part of Budapest, the capital city of Hungary, that lies on the western bank of the Danube. Historically, “Buda” referred only to the royal walled city on Castle Hill (), which was constructed by Béla IV between 1247 and ...

in 1776 on which he worked together with colleague painter Mihailo Skokolović. According to so some older biographers, Češljar enrolled in Academy of Fine Arts Vienna in 1786. He worked on his first

iconostasis In Eastern Christianity, an iconostasis () is a wall of icons and religious paintings, separating the nave from the sanctuary in a Church (building), church. ''Iconostasis'' also refers to a portable icon stand that can be placed anywhere withi ...

in 1789 in the church of Mokrin; after that, he worked in Velika Kikinda and Stara

Kanjiža Kanjiža ( sr-Cyrl, Кањижа, pronounced ) formerly Stara Kanjiža ( sr-cyrl, Стара Кањижа; ; , formerly ''Kanizsa'') is a town and municipality located in the North Banat District of the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. Kan ...

in 1791, and in Bačko Petrovo Selo from 1792 to 1793, when he died. Alongside this, he drew several icons for the lower church in

Sremski Karlovci Sremski Karlovci ( sr-Cyrl, Сремски Карловци, ) is a town and municipality located in the South Bačka Districtautonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. It is situated on the banks of the Danube, from Novi Sad. According to the 202 ...

and

of Kovilj monastery which was destroyed in 1848. According to quotes from Teodor Ilić Češljar biographies, he was a great colorist and exceptionally inventive in composure. He didn't always paint in the style of

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 ...

. He, as his coeval, leaned to softer and more gentle colors, silky facture glaze painting just like French masters of

Rococo Rococo, less commonly Roccoco ( , ; or ), also known as Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and dramatic style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpte ...

. There is no accurate information about all of the portraits painted by Teodor Ilić Češljar, but it is certain that his works include portraits of bishop Pavle Avakumović (1789), portrait of an unknown priest ( National Museum of Serbia), portrait of Josif Jovanović Šakabenta (1787, Museum of

Vršac Vršac ( sr-Cyrl, Вршац, ) is a city in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. As of 2022, the city urban area had a population of 31,946, while the city administrative area had 45,462 inhabitants. It is located in the geographical ...

) and large number of ecclesiastical portraits. On these portraits, Češljar proved to be a master of drawing and also a subtle and aesthetic colorist as he did with icons. His famous painting of ''Saint Barbara Anguish'' (1785) was drawn for Bishop of

Nagyvárad Oradea (, , ; ; ) is a city in Romania, located in the Crișana region. It serves as the administrative county seat, seat of Bihor County and an economic, social, and cultural hub in northwestern Romania. The city lies between rolling hills on ...

. It shows his great sense of composition. This canvas is reminiscent of Venetian decorative painters. Two wall paintings in the St. Nicholas Church in

Kikinda Kikinda ( sr-Cyrl, Кикинда, ; ) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the North Banat District in Serbia. The city's urban area has 32,084 inhabitants, while the city administrative area has 49,326 inhabit ...

show even more intentions for Venetian painting. They are ''The Last Supper'' and ''Christ in Eclat''. A street in Kikinda is named after him.

Works

Bishop Stefan Avakumović, cca 1790, by Teodor Ilić Češljar, National Museum of Serbia.jpg, ''Bishop Stefan Avakumović'', c. 1790, National Museum of Serbia Josif Jovanovic.jpeg, ''Josif Jovanović, Bishop of Vršac'', 1787, Vršac City Museum Teodor Ilić Češljar St Barbara.jpg, ''The Torture of St. Barbara'', 1785, National Museum of Serbia

References

External links

Painting by Češljar
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cesljar, Teodor Ilic 1746 births 1793 deaths People from the Habsburg monarchy People from Žabalj Serbian painters Baroque painters 18th-century Serbian people Academy of Fine Arts Vienna alumni Habsburg Serbs

Biography

Works

See also

References

External links