August Friedrich Oelenhainz

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August Friedrich Oelenhainz: Portrait of Maria Josepha Hermengilde von Liechtenstein
August Friedrich Oelenhainz: Portrait of Alois I of Liechtenstein, around 1804, Palais Liechtenstein , Vienna

August Friedrich Oelenhainz (born June 28, 1745 in Endingen near Balingen ( Duchy of Württemberg ), † November 5, 1804 in Pfalzburg ( Lorraine )) was a German painter .

Life

The son of a pastor was only trained by his uncle, the painter Wolfgang Dietrich Majer in Tübingen . From 1761 he studied at the "Academie des Arts" in Ludwigsburg under the Württemberg court painter Johann Wilhelm Beyer , with whom he went to Vienna in 1768. He started studying at the Vienna Art Academy and was able to win first prize in 1769 with his admission piece at the Copper Engraving Academy , a nude drawing. He quickly became a popular painter at the imperial court. From a young age he was considered a talented portraitist. Even if Oelenhainz kept traveling to Germany and Switzerland , he stayed in Vienna for most of his life. Only a longer stay in Switzerland is documented, which can be justified with Oelenhainz's membership in the Freemasons . This organization enabled him to maintain additional orders and close contact with the great minds of his time. For example, he portrayed Johann Caspar Lavater and Christian Friedrich Daniel Schubart , with the latter he stayed on the Hohenasperg in 1780 . From 1790 he worked in Zurich and in 1792 in Bern . In Bern he left numerous portraits, of which the portrait of Mayor Albrecht von Mülinen stands out. During this time he made several trips with the painter Johann Heinrich Kunkler from St. Gallen , who was 11 years his junior .

In addition to other well-known personalities, he also captured several members of the Houses of Liechtenstein and Schwarzenberg in paintings. The portraits of children of the Liechtenstein family in particular show very clearly that Oelenhainz's influences can be found for the most part in French portraiture and to a lesser extent in the English masters. His works distance themselves from opulent forms of representation in the baroque sense, but rather testify to the desire to portray the personality of the sitter.

From 1800 he stayed in Ulm and in 1801 in Stuttgart . In 1803 he traveled to Paris and died in 1804 on the way home.

Oelenhainz was a member of the Freemasons Association . His remarkable life and work have remained largely unexplored to this day.

Works (selection)

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Entry on Kunkler in the SIKART Lexicon
  2. ↑ Biography Oelenhainz ' ( Memento from July 28, 2014 in the Internet Archive ). In: Digital Belvedere
  3. ↑ Martin Oelenhainz: A Masonic Life ... , p. 187

literature

  • Martin Oelenhainz: A Masonic life in the late 18th century using the example of the portrait painter August Friedrich Oelenhainz , 2nd, expanded edition. With numerous, partly colored illustrations, o. O., self-published 2011
  • Leopold Oelenheinz : Friedrich Oelenhainz. An 18th century portrait painter, his life and works . With 36 collotype plates and 42 illustrations in the text, Seemann, Leipzig 1907 online
  • Leopold Oelenheinz: Contributions to the biography of the portrait painter August Friedrich Oelenhainz 1745–1804 . In: “Württembergische Quarterjahrhefte für Landesgeschichte”, 1895, pages 104–113. online 22.4 MB
  • Albert Ilg, Julius Hartmann:  Oelenhainz, August Friedrich . In: Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB). Volume 24, Duncker & Humblot, Leipzig 1887, p. 284 f.

Web links

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personal data
SURNAME Oelenhainz, August Friedrich
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Oelenhainz, Friedrich; Oeleheinz, Friedrich; Oelenheinz, August Friedrich; Ölenhainz, August Friedrich; Ölenhainz, Friedrich
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German painter
DATE OF BIRTH June 28, 1745
PLACE OF BIRTH Endingen (Balingen)
DATE OF DEATH November 5, 1804
Place of death Pfalzburg