Jenison-Walworth – The Winterhalter Catalogue

Portrait of Franz Oliver Graf von Jenison zu Walworth (1787-1867) [Part IV]

Portrait of Franz Oliver Graf von Jenison zu Walworth (1787-1867) [Part IV]

I am dedicating this concluding section of the series of articles on F.X. Winterhalter’s Portrait of Franz Oliver Graf von Jenison zu Walworth (1787-1867) by sharing with you my other passion – genealogical research on Winterhalter’s sitters:

Franz Oliver (3^rd) Graf von Jenison zu Walworth (Heidelberg 9.06.1787-Florence 20.05.1867)

The sitter’s quarterings (limited to the first three generations) are as follows:

Franz Oliver (3^rd) Graf von Jenison zu Walworth (1787-1867)
Francis (Franz) (2^nd) Graf von Jenison zu Walworth (Walworth 8.02.1764-Heidelburg 28.04.1824), m.1^st
Charlotte Freiin von Cornet (1766-11.09.1864)
Francis Jenison, of Low Walworth, co Durham, cr. 1^st Graf von Jenison zu Walworth (17.09.1790) (Edinburgh 20.01.1732-Heidelberg 30.06.1799), m.Edinburgh 16.09.1758
Miss Charlotte Smith (London 7.06.1744-Heidelberg 12.02.1803)
N*** von Cornet, m.
????
John Jenison, of Low Walworth, co. Durham
Elisabeth Sandford (dau of Francis Sandford, of Twemlow, co Salop)
N*** Smith, m.
????
N*** von Cornet, m.
????
????
????

The count married in 1824 (div.) Amalia Gräfin Batthyány (1805-1866; daughter of József Sándor Graf Batthyány de Német-Ujvar (1777-1812), who m. Barbara (Borbála) Skerlecz de Lomnicza (1782-1834)). The couple divorced, and Amalia Gräfin von Jenison zu Walworth married 1831 Karl Theodor Graf von Westerholt und Gysenberg (16.09.1795-5.12.1863).

The couple had no children.

http://www.pinakothek.de/neue-pinakothek

Portrait of Franz Oliver Graf von Jenison zu Walworth (1787-1867) [Part III]

Portrait of Franz Oliver Graf von Jenison zu Walworth (1787-1867) [Part III]

The biographical research on the sitter tells us that Franz Oliver Graf von Jenison zu Walworth (Heidelberg 9.06.1787 – Florence 20.05.1867), a scion of a British aristocratic family and son of Franz v. J.-W., Chamberlain at the Court of Darmstadt, was born 9.06.1787 in Heidelberg, where his grandfather settled after emigrating from England in 1775. He began his diplomatic career at the age of 23 as a secretary with the Bavarian Legation in Berlin. In 1811 he was dispatched to St Petersburg, to Paris in 1813, and London in 1814. In 1816 he was appointed to Naples, where he remained until 1821. In 1824 he was appointed Bavarian ambassador to the Netherlands, but in 1826 he decided to temporarily retire from diplomatic service, to which he returned in 1833 serving as ambassador to London until 1835. Same year he was sent to the court of King Otto of Greece in Athens, but later that year reappointed as ambassador to Paris. In 1839 he was appointed to the embassy in St Petersburg, and in 1842 to Vienna. He finally retired from the diplomatic service in 1847, and spent last years of his life in Italy, dying in Florence on 20 May 1867.

As per my previous entry, von Jenison zu Walworth’s dates as Bavarian Ambassador to Paris correspond with the date the portrait was painted (1837), although it remains uncertain whether the portrait was commissioned by the ambassador from Winterhalter or painted on the artist’s own volition for a possible showing at the Salon.

The portrait most likely remained in von Jenison zu Walworth’s collection, and upon his death donated to the Bayerische Staatsgemäldesammlungen (Inv. WAF 1196). Today it is at the Neue Pinakothek, where it is can be seen in the context of works by other notable German artists who were active in Bavaria in the first half of the nineteenth century.

http://www.pinakothek.de/neue-pinakothek

Portrait of Franz Oliver Graf von Jenison zu Walworth (1787-1867) [Part II]

Portrait of Franz Oliver Graf von Jenison zu Walworth (1787-1867) [Part II]

At the time of writing, no correspondence emerged to shed light on the production of this portrait or the choice of the garments worn by the count. The signature in the lower right hand corner of the painting tells us that the portrait was painted – or at the very least completed – by the artist in Paris in 1837.

It is most likely that the portrait was exhibited at the Salon of 1837, and given the Salon’s submission deadlines, it can be surmised that the portrait was completed in winter of 1837. This may explain the reason why the count is wearing such warm and cosy garments.

However, it is also known that Franz Oliver Graf von Jenison zu Walworth was a career diplomat, who served as Bavaria’s Ambassador in Paris from 1835 to 1839. Therefore, another reason for the choice of the count’s outfit might stem from traditional portrayal of ambassadors. The most famous representation is undoubtedly The Ambassadors, by Hans Holbein the Younger (1553, oil on panel, National Gallery, London), which shows the Ambassador on the left hand side of the painting not only in similar robes richly decorated with furs, but standing in a pose, which is echoed in Winterhalter’s portrait of the count von Jenison zu Walworth, albeit in reverse.

http://www.pinakothek.de/neue-pinakothek

Portrait of Franz Oliver Graf von Jenison zu Walworth (1787-1867) [Part I]

Portrait of Franz Oliver Graf von Jenison zu Walworth (1787-1867) [Part I]

I spent a few weeks visiting museums which have works by Franz Xaver Winterhalter and / or Hermann Winterhalter.

My first port of call was the Neue Pinakothek in Munich, which has a very special painting by Franz Xaver Winterhalter, Portrait of Franz Oliver Graf von Jenison zu Walworth (1837, oil on canvas, 131.0 x 98.0 cm).

The three-quarter-length portrait shows the count standing, and leaning on a pedestal with his right elbow. A most extravagant fur coat is thrown over his shoulders, cascading down the whole length of the portrait. Underneath it, he is shown wearing a dark jacket with velvet detailing. An elaborate black silk cravat is tied around starched shirt collars, which, together with the crisp white cuff, break through the overall darkness of the count’s outfit.

The portrait is remarkable for its subdued palette limited only to the variations of three main pigments – white, black, and red. The artist’s ability to manipulate the black pigment in order to produce innumerable distinct shades, as well as relate textures of different black fabrics and materials – be it fur, velvet, linen, or silk – is truly astounding.

http://www.pinakothek.de/neue-pinakothek