August Wilhelm Wedeking

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August Wilhelm Wedeking (also: Wedekind; born January 22, 1807 in Bremen , † 1875 in Munich ) was a German portrait and landscape painter and photographer from Bremen.

biography

August Wilhelm Wedeking was born on January 22nd, 1807 in Bremen as the son of Beta Maria (née Lahden) and the master tailor August Wilhelm Wedeking sen. born. He was married four times, but only the first three wives are known by name: On July 31, 1831, he married Gertrude Margarethe Heyn, whose portrait is now in the Kunsthalle Bremen . Wedeking's second marriage was on November 10, 1844 with Wubeta Lange, daughter of Anna (née Bäckmann) and the organist Johann Hinrich Lange. His third wife was Rebecka Margarethe Wessels on February 27, 1848, the daughter of Engel Giorgine Brandes and Jacob Wessels. Wedeking trained as a decorative painter in Bremen from 1821 to 1826 . He then went on a journey for several years . Although nothing is known about the path and the goals so far, the progress of artistic development suggests that the city of Munich was one of Wedeking's stations. After returning to Bremen in 1831, Wedeking was listed in the address book as "painter" at 10 Papenstrasse from 1832 to 1833. He lived and worked under the same job title from 1834 to 1839 at Neuenstrasse 78. Parallel to his work as a decorative painter, Wedeking ran a paint trade from 1840 to 1841. Wedeking studied portrait painting in Munich from 1841 to 1844 . This profession is recorded in the Bremen address book from 1842 to 1845. Wedeking still dealt with colors, but this changed in 1846 when the artist was listed only as a "portrait painter" until 1848. As a typical representative of Biedermeier portrait art , Wedeking was strongly influenced by the idealizing painting style of the Bavarian court painter Joseph Karl Stieler . A stylistic point of reference for Wedeking's portraits of women was the gallery of beauty in Munich's Nymphenburg Palace , created between 1827 and 1850. The work of Ferdinand Georg Waldmüller also had an influence .

Examples of Wedeking's portrait painting can be found in the Kunsthalle Bremen . The work was carried out as part of a research project. In 2006, a self-portrait by Wedeking came to the Kunsthalle as a gift from Irene Strauss. Further portraits of the artist can be found in the Focke Museum in Bremen. From 1846 to 1847 Wedeking studied the art of landscape painting in Munich. An example of this is the painting View from the Bell Tower from 1847, which Heinrich Glosemeyer donated to the Kunsthalle Bremen in 1949 .

Despite his stays in Munich, Wedeking was still active in Bremen. In 1849 he opened new rooms on Wall 74a. There he continued to make portraits, but until 1850 he also called himself “Owner of the Museum of Art”. Obviously, the Bremen artist operated his own exhibition space, which was only used for presentation, but not as a studio. In the period from 1851 to 1852 Wedeking offered a wide range of artistic services: In addition to making portraits, he gave lessons in painting and drawing, and showed works in a "permanent art exhibition and cosmoramas ". At the same time he ran an "art shop" in his business premises. Wedeking closed the exhibition again in 1853, and then began trading in haberdashery from 1854 . From 1855 to 1858 he also sold stationery and art supplies.

Wedeking's pictures were shown in various exhibitions at the Kunstverein in Bremen from 1843 to 1860 . The entries in the catalogs and painting directories reflect his artistic career: in 1843 and 1845, only portraits of the painter were shown in the show. After his training as a landscape painter , he exhibited both portraits and various landscape paintings in 1847, 1849, 1852, 1854, 1856 and 1858. Another turning point was the exhibition of 1860, when Wedeking presented two portrait photographs as well as landscapes. According to the address book, Wedeking officially acted as a "portrait painter" and "photographer" since 1859. Probably during a third longer stay in Munich, the time frame of which cannot be specified, the artist had received appropriate training. Wedeking was a photography pioneer in the Hanseatic city.

A photograph of the Bremen market square in Wedeking is kept in the Focke Museum . It shows the old town houses that were demolished in 1860 to make way for the new stock exchange. The photo is of documentary value as it is the only photograph showing the 'Baleer'sche Haus' around 1500 and the 'Pundsack'sche Haus' from the mid-16th century before it was laid down.

Wedeking advertised his photo studio in 1860 and offered his photos “at any time of the day, in the best quality, in any size and at low prices”. With his specialization in portrait photography , he turned to a market with growing demand. Members of the middle social class could also afford to be photographed. The early Bremen photographers in particular often enjoyed artistic training and, like Wedeking, were well versed in portrait and landscape painting . The advertisement for his business explicitly emphasized this qualification. For example, an advertisement from 1865 states: “My photography studio, [...] highly recommended to the honored audience. AW Wedeking, portrait painter. "

In 1864 the artist moved to Wall 158. In all likelihood Wedeking downsized his business and offerings in the last years of his life: in 1873 only the “Kunsthandlung” is listed under his name in the address book and in 1874 he becomes the only “artist” based at the Identified Ostertorstrasse. Wedeking left Bremen soon afterwards and moved to Munich at a time that cannot be precisely determined.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Bremen painting 1800 to 1950 examined in terms of art history. In 2005 the museum received portraits of family members Wedeking as a gift: Gertrud Margarethe Wedeking, wife of the artist , 1842 ; August Adolph Wedeking, son of the artist , 1841 ; Gertrude Wedeking, daughter of the artist , 1841 ; Gertrude Heyn, sister of Gertrud Margarethe Wedeking , 1856 ; Otto Peter Heyn, Bremer Kahnschiffer, father-in-law of the artist , 1841
  2. ↑ Self-portrait
  3. ^ Wedeking, August Wilhelm . Kunsthalle Bremen. Retrieved January 14, 2019.
personal data
SURNAME Wedeking, August Wilhelm
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Wedekind, August Wilhelm
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German portrait painter and photographer
DATE OF BIRTH January 22, 1807
PLACE OF BIRTH Bremen
DATE OF DEATH 1875
Place of death Munich