Willy Moralt
Wilhelm ("Willy") Karl Paul Moralt (born December 1, 1884 in Munich , † February 18, 1947 in Lenggries ) was a German genre and landscape painter .
Life
Willy Moralt came from a long-established family of musicians. He was born the son of the royal chamber musician and landscape painter Paul Moralt (1849–1943), a student of Carl Spitzweg and Christian Morgenstern , and his wife Maria, née Julier. Willy Moralt is often referred to as Spitzweg's great-nephew, but is not related to him, as he is the great-nephew of the wife of Spitzweg's brother Eduard (1811-1884), Angelika nee. Moralt (1819-1873) was. The main heir of Spitzweg, who died childless in 1885, was his nephew Otto Spitzweg (1843–1921), but later Moralt also received some sketchbooks and preliminary drawings from Spitzweg.
At the age of 15 he made long trips to Württemberg , Baden and Alsace . The father, who recognized his talent, sent him to the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich , where he became a student of Karl Raupp . After two years of study, Moralt received the Bronze Medal of Honor for the landscape paintings exhibited in the Glass Palace . The art dealer Demeter was his friend and financial supporter. Moralt lived in Munich, Buttermelcherstraße 9, later Hans-Sachs-Straße 1.
On January 25, 1907, Moralt married Anna, called "Anita" Schmidt, in London, against the wishes of both parents . After several trips, Moralt fell ill with a permanent lung disease.
At the International Art Exhibition in 1924 he was awarded the gold medal. During the Second World War he lost his Munich apartment after a bomb attack . He then moved to Lenggries, where he died on February 18, 1947.
plant
Moralt was best known as a copyist and copyist of Spitzweg, whose painting style he had internalized in such a way that some of his pictures could be confused with Spitzweg's originals, especially since they were sometimes provided with his signature. When he was not copying directly, he put together Spitzweg motifs, for example the popular hermits or tour groups in the countryside, to create new compositions. The art historian Siegfried Wichmann also accuses him of “falsifying intent” and assesses his imitations as “unbearable banalization”. However, it has not been clearly proven that he himself faked Spitzweg's signature or that the pictures were older. Rather, he often signed with his own name.
He also painted light-flooded Bavarian landscapes in a more modern but naturalistic style, comparable to Rudolf Reschreiter and Edward Harrison Compton . He also worked as an illustrator for Karl May 's illustrated travel stories (from 1907).
On May 5, 2019, an episode of the NDR's Lieb & Teuer program was broadcast, moderated by Janin Ullmann and filmed in Reinbek Castle . A painting by Willy Moralt was discussed with the painting expert Ariane Skora, which is reminiscent of Carl Spitzweg's works in terms of subject matter, choice of motifs and style.
literature
- Thomas Rosky, in: Trödler & Collector Journal , August 2004, pp. 52–56 (with 24 color illustrations)
- Konrad Dreher: Willy Moralt - Happy pictures from a sunny life . Munich 1923
- Bruckmann's Lexicon of Munich Art, Munich painter in the 19th and 20th centuries Century , Volume 6, pp. 95-97. Munich 1994
- Siegfried Wichmann: Carl Spitzweg: Directory of Works , Stuttgart 2002, p. 44
Web links
- Entry in the Karl May Wiki
- Private page with Moralt genealogy and portrait photo ( Memento from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive )
- Willy Moralt at Dorotheum
- Willy Moralt at Ketterer Kunst
- Willy Moralt at Lempertz
- Willy Moralt at the art auction house Schloss Ahlden
- Willy Moralt at arnet
Individual evidence
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Moralt, Willy |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Moralt, Wilhelm Karl Paul (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German genre and landscape painter and great-nephew of Carl Spitzweg |
| DATE OF BIRTH | December 1, 1884 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Munich |
| DATE OF DEATH | February 18, 1947 |
| Place of death | Lenggries |