female portrait – The Winterhalter Catalogue

Portrait of the Viscountess Esher @ Christie’s London, 1 Dec 2022

A beautiful and rarely seen portrait of the Viscountess Esher is coming up for auction at Christie’s, in London, on 1 December 2022: https://onlineonly.christies.com/s/british-european-art-online/franz-xaver-winterhalter-german-1805-1873-151/173049

The sitter is represented on an oval-shaped canvas, against an abstracted background of darkened yellowish and bluish tints; the shadows thrown by her shoulders suggest an intimate interior environment. She is shown at half-length, in a semi-turn to the right, with her head slightly tilted to the left, turning en face to meet the viewer’s gaze. She is wearing a white silk chemise richly decorated with lace, and with lace-edged satin ribbons at the shoulder. A white gauze shawl is thrown over her right arm and is wrapped around just below her shoulders. Her jewellery comprises of a pearl necklace encircled thrice around her neck, and fastened with a golden, gem-set clasp. With her right hand, she fingers gently the pearls of the longest strand. A bracelet of large pearls is visible on her wrist; a gold and gem-set ring is seen on her ‘wedding’ finger.

Following her mother’s marriage to John Gurwood, a British officer and diplomat, Eugénie Mayer felt equally at home in Paris and London. Her exotic colouring and (what was described as) ‘eastern beauty’, with large, almond-shaped, dark-hazel eyes, and an abundance of black, wavy hair, dressed over the ears and crowned by a plaited chignon, inspired writers, poets, and painters on both sides of the Channel. She was extremely proud of her long neck and naturally slim, sloping shoulders, showing them off to their best advantage in low-cut gowns, and accentuating them by the clouds of weightless gauze shawls. There was never a shortage of suitors from titled and wealthy admirers, but the questions over the legality of her mother’s separation from Eugénie’s father, Lazare Mayer; the rumours of her being an illegitimate daughter of the Emperor Napoleon; and (what was euphemistically referred to as) ‘irregularities’ in the private lives of her aunts (including a love affair with the celebrated French writer, Alexandre Dumas), kept marriage proposals at bay.

By the time Eugénie turned thirty, she resigned herself to the life of spinsterhood. She accompanied her mother on regular peregrinations, forming meaningful connections within political, social, and literary circles on both sides of the Channel. That is until the day when a young aspiring lawyer, Baliol Brett, saw her across the crowded room and became determined to make her his wife. A protracted engagement, during which Brett had focused on building up his practice and career, culminated in their marriage in 1850, and the birth of the couple’s first child in 1852.

The relatively modest scale of Winterhalter’s portrait, its oval shape (popularly associated with intimate miniatures), the physical proximity of the sitter within the shallow space, the direct gaze, a comparatively modest attire reminiscent of a peignoir, as well as the presence of pearls (and their association with purity, femininity, and childbirth), suggest that the painting was intended for an intimate audience of the sitter’s family and close friends, rather than as a formal and official representation. As such, it may have been commissioned, most likely, to commemorate the sitter’s wedding in 1850 (and perhaps also her pregnancy at the time of the sittings). The difference in dates between the sitter’s wedding and the completion of the portrait can be ascribed to the recorded, lengthy waiting periods which Winterhalter’s potential clients had to endure in order to be immortalised by the fashionable painter.

Eugenie and Baliol Brett, at the time, were not a part of Queen Victoria’s circle, either on an informal basis or as official courtiers. The portrait is, therefore, quite significant as one of the very few of Winterhalter’s representations of the British elite outside the immediate court circles. The inscription on the portrait indicates that it was painted in Paris. The sitter’s descent from Franco-German Protestant and Jewish banking and merchant dynasties fits within Winterhalter’s main Continental patronage networks, the members of which dominated the artist’s client base from the end of Louis Philippe’s July Monarchy in February 1848 and until the proclamation of Napoleon III’s Second Empire in December 1852.

Baliol Brett’s elevation to peerage as Lord Esher did not take place until 1885, and therefore the painting was originally known as Portrait of Mrs Baliol Brett. It was entered under this title into the artist’s account books (Wild 1894, 41). It was also under this title, that the portrait was exhibited at the Royal Academy in London in 1853 (no. 96), becoming one of the only three portraits exhibited by Winterhalter at the RA (and one of the only four paintings, including Florinda, of 1852, in the collection of HM King Charles III, to be shown there). While its presence in the exhibition was noted by several newspapers (such as Examiner, Morning Chronicle, and The Times), the references to it did not exceed a few brief platitudes.

After the exhibition, the portrait remained in the collection of the sitter and her descendants, virtually unknown to the wider world save for a small group of scholars. This is the first time in its 170-year history that the portrait is being offered on the art market.

Portrait of Wanda Fürstin von und zu Putbus (1837-1867) @ Sotheby’s

Portrait of Wanda Fürstin von und zu Putbus (1837-1867) @ Sotheby’s

The second portrait consigned to Sotheby’s represents daughter-in-law of Clothilde Gräfin von Wylich und Lottum, whose portrait was discussed in the previous post.

It represents Wanda-Marie von Veltheim-Bartensleben, Fürstin v.u.z. Putbus (1837-67) [1858, Paris; oil on canvas, 100 x 81.5 cm, cat. no. 658], who was the eldest of two daughters, and the eldest of the three children, of Georg Albrecht Karl Freiherr von Veltheim-Bartensleben (1812-74) and his first wife, Asta-Luise Gräfin zu Putbus (1812-1850). In July 1857, shortly before her twentieth birthday, she married Wilhelm-Malthus, Graf von Wylich und Lottum (1833-1907), her first cousin, second son of her maternal aunt and future mother-in-law, Clothilde Gräfin von Wylich und Lottum (1809-94). The couple had five daughters, the three eldest of whom would inherit their father’s sovereign titles in succession. She was a regular fixture at social entertainments in Berlin, an expert huntress, and a hostess par excellence, entertaining a number of notable guests, including Otto von Bismark, at the family’s castle on the island of Rügen. The Princess died of puerperal fever sixteen days after giving birth to her youngest daughter, Wanda-Augusta, on 18 December 1867, aged 30 years and six months. Her sudden death was deeply lamented by her close friend, Queen Victoria eldest daughter, Victoria, Crown Princess of Prussia (later Empress of Germany).

The Princess is shown standing, at three-quarter-length, in half-turn to the left, and facing the viewer. Her hair is parted in the middle, brushed back and arranged in chignon and neck-length curls. She is wearing a black silk or satin travelling dress with white lace collar and a large black and red bow at the front; with black ruches, lace and other details on the sleeves and bodice. A large wrap is thrown around arms; light-brown leather gloves are worn. Her jewellery comprises of gold and jet earrings and a small (watch?) chain at her waist. The princess is shown against a bright red background, presumably the artist’s studio curtain.

The portrait was most likely commissioned to commemorate the sitter’s wedding in 1857 to Wilhelm-Malthus, Fürst v.u.z. Putbus (1833-1907). As Winterhalter was at the height of his career at the time, with the waiting list of up to two years, it is quite possible that the young bride may have waited for more than six months to have her portrait painted. The choice of a travelling / day dress is unusual in Winterhalter’s oeuvre. The large black wrap suggests that the portrait may have been painted either in winter or early spring of 1858 when the Princess was six to seven months pregnant. The strict and voluminous garments may have been chosen for the portrait to partially disguise her pregnancy.

Incidentally, the Princess was also painted by Richard Lauchert (oil on canvas, signed and dated as painted in 1863, Jagdschloss Granitz). Richard Lauchert was a pupil of F.X. Winterhalter, and also a cousin by marriage to Victoria, Crown Princess of Prussia, who commissioned a number of portraits from Lauchert and also recommended him to her mother, Queen Victoria. Wanda was a personal friend of the Crown Princess, and it is quite likely that the latter may have recommended Lauchert for the later portrait commission.

The portrait will be offered at Sotheby’s London, Of Royal and Noble Descent, 24 Feb 2015, lot 174 (est. £25,000-35,000). See http://www.sothebys.com/

I would like to thank Sotheby’s for acknowledging my assistance with cataloguing this work.

Portrait of Clothilde Gräfin von Wylich und Lottum (1809-1894) @ Sotheby’s

Portrait of Clothilde Gräfin von Wylich und Lottum (1809-1894) @ Sotheby’s

Two important portraits have been consigned to Sotheby’s from a private collection.

The first one depicts Clothilde Gräfin von Wylich und Lottum (1809-1894 née Gräfin und Herrin von und zu Putbus) [1854, Paris; oil on canvas, 82 x 63 cm; cat no 513a]. She was the eldest of five daughters and second of six children of Wilhelm-Malthus Reichsgraf zu Putbus (1783-1854) by his wife, Luise von Lauterbach (1784-1860). In 1828, at the age of 19, she married Hermann Frederick, Graf von Wylich und Lottum (1796-1847), who was thirteen years her senior. He was a chamberlain at the Prussian court and the minister at Naples for a number of years. The couple had three children, two sons and a daughter, the youngest of whom, Wilhelm-Mathus, inherited his maternal grandfather’s estates and titles as a sovereign prince of Putbus, an extensive appanage within the Pomeranian region of present-day Germany.

The countess is depicted at half-length, against a neutral olive-green background, in half-turn to the left, and facing the viewer. The hair is parted in the middle and arranged on both sides in neck-length curls. She is wearing a black dress with plunging neckline edged with two deep valances of white lace, black silk ruches, and further detailing on the bust and sleeves. A brown fur stole is thrown around her arms.

The black dress of the countess reflects her status as widow (her husband died in 1847), but also as a sign of mourning for her father, Wilhelm Malthus, 1^st Fürst v.u.z. Putbus who died in September 1854. The portrait, therefore, was quite likely to have been commissioned to commemorate her succession to her father’s sovereign titles, and would have been painted in the late autumn or early winter of 1854, which also explains the reason why the countess poses wrapped in furs.

The portrait has become the official representation of the sovereign countess, having been lithographed by Gustav Heinrich Gottlob Feckert (1820-1899), and copied at least once.

The portrait will be offered at Sotheby’s London, Of Royal and Noble Descent, 24 Feb 2015, lot 173 (est. £20,000-30,000). See http://www.sothebys.com/

I would like to thank Sotheby’s for acknowledging my assistance with cataloguing this work.

A Sitter Suggested – Lady in Waiting to Augusta Prinzessin von Sachsen-Altenburg

A Sitter Suggested – Lady in Waiting to Augusta Prinzessin von Sachsen-Altenburg (no. 744h).

The Courtauld Institute of Art has a lovely spirited sketch, enticingly titled Hofdame of the Princess of Altenburg. According to the catalogue records, the drawing appears to be unsigned, but a semi-legible inscription on the reverse reads: Hofdame der Prinzessin … / Moritz … Altenburg.

It is quite easy to establish the identity of Prinzessin … / Moritz … Altenburg. This is most definitely Augusta Prinzessin von Sachsen-Meiningen (1843-1919), who incidentally is believed to have been painted by Winterhalter, together with her parents and brother, around 1849 (present location unknown); and who in 1862 married Moritz Prinz von Sachsen-Altenburg (1829-1907).

The date of the princess’s wedding establishes the approximate date for the sketch, which would have been drawn some time in or after 1862.

A research of the Sachsen-Alteburg Hofkalendar suggests that the woman in the portrait is most likely to be the Princess’s chief lady-in-waiting, or Oberhofmeisterin, by the name of Fräulein Julie von Stenglin, genn. von Benninghausen. Further research establishes the dates of Julie v. Stenglin as 1812-1892. This would suggest that she would have been in her early 50s when the sketch was drawn. This (arguably) coincides with the age of the lady in the Courtauld drawing.

The Hofkalendar also states that Fräulein Julie v. Stenglin was an ‘Ehrendame des Köngl. Bayerischen Theresien-Ordens’, which is perhaps the insignia clearly visible on the woman’s left breast.

The drawing has been provisionally entered in the Catalogue Raisonné under no. 744h.

Sitters Suggested – Bölger and Burckhardt Families

Sitters Suggested – Bölger and Burckhardt Families

Franz Wild mentions in his posthumous list of paintings by Franz Xaver Winterhalter a portrait of Mme Boelger Burkhardt, painted in or around 1866 (Cat No 811a; Wild 1894, 45; Winterhalter 1987/88, 234, no 350).

An internet research suggests that the sitter in the portrait might be Anna Burckhardt (1837-1923), who married in 1855 August Bölger (1828-1867) (www.stroux.org [sighted 10/08/2014]).

The current research suggests that she is also the only woman who had a combination of these two surnames at the time. She was a Swiss national, and the research suggests that in 1866 and 1867 Winterhalter may have travelled to Southern Germany and perhaps to Switzerland, during which time the sittings for the portrait may have been arranged.

Nothing further is known about the sitter apart from a photograph of her taken some time during the 1860s, in the collection of the Universitätsbibliothek Basel http://www.ub.unibas.ch/ [sighted 10/08/2014].

The present whereabouts of the portrait are unknown. Any further information regarding Anna Burckhardt, Frau August Bölger, and her portrait by Winterhalter, would be most appreciated and gratefully acknowledged in my research.

Portrait of Edward Prinz von Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach (1823-1902) (copy) @ Gorringes [Part 4]

Portrait of Edward Prinz von Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach (1823-1902) (copy) @ Gorringes [Part 4]

[Continued from Part 3]

As it has become customary in my blog entries, at this point in time I usually furnish the information about the sitter’s descendants.

The sitter, HSH Wilhelm August Eduard Prinz von Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach, Herzog von Sachsen (Bushy Park, London 11.10.1823-London 16.11.1902), married on 27.11.1851, Lady Augusta Catherine Gordon-Lennox (Goodwood House, Sussex 14.01.1827-London 3.04.1904).

His wife, daughter of Charles Gordon-Lennox, 5^th Duke of Richmond and Lennox (1790-1860), and Lady Caroline Paget (1796-1874, daughter of the 1^st Marquess of Anglesey), was not considered of equal birth under the German law. The marriage was deemed to have been morganatic, and the bride received a courtesy title of Gräfin von Dornburg from her future father-in-law. However, in Britain, at least since 1886, both husband and wife were consistently referred to as Their Serene Highnesses Prince and Princess Edward of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach.

The couple had no children.

It is worthwhile pointing out that Lawrences featured in the same auction in October 2006, a portrait of Lady Augusta Catherine Gordon-Lennox, Princess Edward of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (lot 1556).

A comparison with the sitter’s photographs which were taken around this time irrefutably proves the identity of the sitter. While this is a beautifully executed portrait, which also bears all the quintessential hallmarks of the mid-nineteenth-century portraiture (the portrait is allegedly dated as having been painted in 1856), unfortunately, it is impossible to attribute it to Winterhalter. Not only it differs stylistically from Winterhalter’s oeuvre, it is signed by another artist. Albeit the signature is illegible, according to the catalogue, the unknown artist’s initials T and H can be clearly made out.

Portrait of Mary, Duchess of Gloucester (1776-1857) (copy) @ Gorringes [Part 2]

Portrait of Mary, Duchess of Gloucester (1776-1857) (copy) @ Gorringes [Part 2]

[Continued from Part 1]

The sitter was the fourth daughter and eleventh child of King George III and Queen Charlotte of Great Britain. She was considered to be the most beautiful of the six daughters, but similarly to her sisters, Mary’s prospects of connubial bliss were overshadowed by the illness of her father, domineering spirit of her mother, historical events, and the political instability in Europe. Eventually, in 1816, she married her cousin William, Duke of Gloucester. Although the marriage would have been vetoed by her father who disapproved marriages between cousins in general, and of the Gloucester family in particular, the union took place during George III’s illness and was only made possible with the mediation of the Prince Regent.

The Duchess of Gloucester commissioned Winterhalter to paint her portrait as a birthday present to her niece, Queen Victoria, with whom she was very close. When the Duchess died in 1857, at the age of 81, having outlived all her brothers and sisters, Queen Victoria wrote: “With her is gone the last link, which connected us with a bygone generation. She was an authority on everything, a bright example of loyalty, devotion and duty, the kindest and best of mistresses, and friends. She had become like a grandmother to us all, from her age, and from her being the last of the family.”

To be continued … [see part 3].

Portrait of Mary, Duchess of Gloucester (1776-1857) (copy) @ Gorringes (cat no 389) [Part 1]

Portrait of Mary, Duchess of Gloucester (1776-1857) (copy) @ Gorringes [Part 1]

Replicas and copies of Winterhalter’s works are becoming increasingly valuable on the art market. However, they can still slip by unnoticed and undetected with a relative ease at art auctions.

For example, the auction house Gorringes, of Lewes, East Sussex, featured in one of their auctions in April 2006 a painting which they described as “Victorian School, Portrait of an Old Lady” (illustrated above).

The painting is, in fact, an exceptionally fine copy of Franz Xaver Winterhalter’s Portrait of Mary, Duchess of Gloucester (1776-1857), the original of which, signed and dated as painted in 1850, is in the collection of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, possibly at Buckingham Palace.

The portrait shows Queen Victoria’s seventy-four year old aunt at head-and-shoulders, in half-turn to the left, turning her head towards the viewer. Her hair is parted in the middle and plaited around the ears in an early Victorian style. It is covered by a blue and white lace headdress, which is fastened under her chin, and descends onto her shoulders. The Duchess is wearing a dark-brown day dress, possibly of satin or silk, with ruches and embroideries, and with a white collar edged with lace. Her decorations comprise of a single golden brooch just visible under the lace; and a heavy pendant, possibly a large miniature or a watch, suspended from a heavy gold chain.

The portrait clearly shows Winterhalter’s versatility in depicting sitters of all ages. The artist has been frequently accused of beautifying and idealising his sitters, but as this portrait shows, he does not shy away from the veristic though sympathetic depiction of the venerable old age.

I have only seen a photograph of the work at Gorringes online, and not in high resolution. It is most likely a copy by William Corden, a professionally trained painter of extraordinary talent, who, together with his son William was employed by Queen Victoria almost exclusively as a copyist. However, the exceptionally high quality of the portrait, that comes forth even through this low resolution, makes me wonder whether this could be indeed Winterhalter’s own replica.

To be continued … [see part 2].

Portrait of Katharina Sigl-Vespermann (1802-1877), 1825 @ Kiefer Pforzheim [Part 2]

Portrait of Katharina Sigl-Vespermann (1802-1877), 1825 @ Kiefer Pforzheim [Part 2]

[Continued from Part 1]

Winterhalter’s involvement with lithography began early at the age of 12 or 13, when in 1818 he began his apprenticeship at the lithographic studios in Freiburg-im-Breigau. His lithographic work continued in Munich from 1823, where he also attended the Bavarian Academy of Fine Arts. A number of Winterhalter’s lithographs from the Munich period feature performers of the Hofoper, or the Royal Bavarian Opera and Ballet Theatre. While further research on this subject is required, given the fact that the artist was still a young student, it is most likely that commissions for the portraits of theatre performers came to him via one of the lithographic publishing houses for which he worked at the time, such as those of Montmorillon, Piloty, or Selb.

It is important to point out that in 1828 Katharina Sigl-Vespermann was also painted by the Bavarian Court portraitist, Karl Joseph Stieler (1781-1858) (oil on canvas, Neue Pinakothek, Munich). This means that Winterhalter’s portrait predates that of Stieler, and was most likely carried out before Winterhalter joined Stieler’s studio, whereupon the artist concentrated on producing numerous portrait lithographs based on the works of his master rather than on his own original drawings.

It has to be admitted, albeit reluctantly, that of the two portraits, Stieler’s is arguably better of the two. However, it has to be borne in mind that Stieler’s portrait is a work by a mature artist whose reputation as the elite portrait specialist was established literally before Winterhalter was born. At the same time, it is interesting to observe, that Sigl-Vespermann looks very similar in both portraits. Both artists captured not only the singer’s elaborately fashionable hairstyle, but also her strikingly elongated and angular face, and a long, swan-like neck. It can be argued that the comparison between the two portraits clearly shows that Winterhalter’s mimetic abilities were already in evidence from the very early stages of his career.

Portrait of Katharina Sigl-Vespermann (1802-1877), 1825 @ Kiefer Pforzheim [Part 1]

Portrait of Katharina Sigl-Vespermann (1802-1877), 1825 @ Kiefer Pforzheim [Part 1]

The auction house Kiefer features in their forthcoming Buch- und Kunstauktionen on 15 February 2014, in Pforzheim, Germany, a lithographic Portrait of Katharina Sigl-Vespermann (1802-1877) by Franz Xaver Winterhalter (40 x 29.2 cm, lot 5581, est. €0 – €60).

The lithograph shows the sitter frontally, at half-length, head in semi-profile to the left, her gaze piercing the limits of the picture plane. She wears a fashionable gown most likely of silk, gathered high at the waist, with large diaphanous sleeves, and decorated with silk bows at shoulders. Her hair is parted on one side, styled in fashionably elaborate curls, and adorned with roses.

Katharina Sigl-Verspermann was a renowned Bavarian operatic performer. She came from a family of Bavarian singers and musicians, and made her debut on the Berlin stage at the age of 10. In 1820 she received a permanent engagement with the Munich Court Theatre, where she gave memorable performances as Queen of the Night, Susanne, Elvira, Myrrha, Marzelline (Fidelio), and numerous other roles. She continued touring, appearing on the stages of Vienna, Nurnberg, and Stuttgart. In 1828 she married the baritone Wilhelm Vespermann (1784-1837), widower of another respected opera singer, Clara Metzger (1799-1827). An illness forced Katharina to retire from the stage in 1833, but she continued to participate in selected concerts and performances. She died at the age of 75 in Munich, in 1877.

The importance of this lithograph lies in the fact that it is one of the earliest known lithographic portraits by artist. The portrait bears facsimile signature and date lower right: Winterhalter ft – 1825, suggesting that the artist may also have been responsible for the original portrait drawing on which the lithograph is based (present whereabouts unknown). As the print bears no other names, it is highly possible that the artist was responsible for both the drawing and the production of a lithograph after it.

To be continued … [see part 2].