Portrait of Friedrich von Boxberg
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| Portrait of Friedrich von Boxberg |
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| Ferdinand von Rayski , 1861 |
| Oil on canvas |
| 221 × 141 cm |
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New Masters Gallery in the Albertinum State Art Collections Dresden |
The painting Portrait of Friedrich von Boxberg is in the holdings of the Galerie Neue Meister in Dresden. It comes from the Saxon painter and graphic artist Ferdinand von Rayski and depicts his cousin Friedrich August von Boxberg.
Image description
The picture shows his client, Friedrich August von Boxberg, life-size, as a hunter on a duck hunt. Standing quietly on the seat of a boat, his attention seems to be focused entirely on the huntable fowl, which could flutter out of the reeds at any time. He therefore carries his rifle ready to fire and the dog at his feet is just waiting for the order to fetch the game that has been shot for his master from the adjacent thick reed belt. Seen from a slight soffit and doused in sunlight, the hunter in his heroic pose is almost elevated to a "light figure". In the background, on the far bank of the pond, you can see Zschorna Castle , his family seat.
The picture falls into the painter's last creative period from 1856 to 1884, which is characterized by stylistically different creations. If you compare this picture with other portraits and especially with hunting portraits by Rayski, the rather untypical depiction of the hunter is irritating.
In the mid-1830s, Rayski wrote a guiding principle in his sketchbook:
"Treat secondary things with contempt, but grasp the main subject powerfully ."
This principle has been partially abandoned here and considerable space has been given to secondary issues. This is shown by the fact that the aristocrat is not shown here in the usual “portrait pose”, but is more or less observed at work. The surroundings of the person portrayed and the background of the picture are also depicted with a level of detail that is unusual in other portraits created by Rayski. Some details irritate the viewer because of their unreality, so
- the north side of Zschorna Castle is shown in the background, so that the sunlight shines on the hunter from the north
- the hunter waits upright, is that the game is to shoot: Wild ducks are like all game shy and should, if possible stalked be
- the hunter's footwear and leg clothing is extremely unsuitable for hunting on the water
- it is impossible to stand quietly on the bench of a boat for a long time, unless the boat is stuck in the bank mud.
These indications can stand for the fact that an idealized ruler portrait was created here, which was effectively reinforced with the attributes of the hunt. This form of representation could be justified with the personality of the person portrayed.
Comments on the sitter's biography
Friedrich August von Boxberg comes from the aristocratic Boxberg family , he was born on July 24th, 1816 in Dresden. His father, Karl Gottlob von Boxberg (1768–1825) was an officer, and Friedrich August, like his brothers Emil Bernhard (1808–1866) and Ottomar Robert (1811–1883 / 84), joined the Saxon military. His military career began in 1833 as a Portepeejunker in the 3rd Line Infantry Regiment Prince Friedrich August, in 1834 he was promoted to lieutenant and on January 1, 1842, assigned to the 1st Battalion of the Light Infantry Brigade as a first lieutenant .
In 1849 his unit was used to suppress the Dresden May Uprising . He himself was involved in fighting and received several awards for his bravery. This is how it was used:
- on May 4th to secure the armory as a company commander of the 2nd Company. But since the arsenal was occupied by the military and the rebellious communal guards at that time , his unit had to retreat amid the scorn and ridicule of the assembled masses.
- on May 6th for the successful evacuation of the corner building at Pirnaische / Kleine Schießgasse and the adjacent barricades by rebels , occupation of the adjacent office buildings
- on May 7 for the loss-making on both sides conquest of the Gewandhaus and the barricade on the cross street followed by shelling the area occupied by the rebels Cross Church .
For his service, Oberleutnant Friedrich von Boxberg was promoted to captain and was awarded the Saxon Military Order of St. Heinrich and the Austrian Order of the Iron Crown .
In 1852, Friedrich von Boxberg left the military at his own request with permission to continue to wear the uniform. His son Ulrich († 1905 at Zschorna Castle), from his marriage to Oswine Keil (marriage on August 18, 1849 in Leipzig), also went through a military career.
Friedrich August von Boxberg died on January 11, 1871 on his estate in Zschorna.
Image interpretation
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| The driver (forester Bubenik) |
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| Ferdinand von Rayski , 1861 |
| Oil on canvas |
| 147 × 119 cm |
| National Museum (Wroclaw) |
Knowing this historical context, one could interpret the depiction of the landlord in this heroic pose as a kind of patron saint for his property, his family and his loyal followers. This thesis is underpinned by a comparison with the genre picture The Driver (Forester Bubenik) , which was created at the same time in Zschorna.
Here the hunt is portrayed as everyday life and a livelihood for the common man. The forester sits in the forest thicket on a tree root and eats his bread, he has hung his rifle on the tree, so that it almost disappears and appears as a tree branch. According to the literature, the begging dog should be identical to the dog on the duck boat.
If one puts this picture in relation to the portrait of Friedrich von Boxberg, the statement can hardly be clearer: under the protection of his master the faithful eats his daily bread, he has hung his weapon “on the nail” (here the tree).
Whether this picture interpretation is valid and why Rayski has depicted his cousin in such an exaggerated way cannot be conclusively clarified at this point. What is certain, however, is that these pictures can be taken as evidence of Ferdinand von Rayski's position as an outstanding portraitist and one of the best German landscape painters of his time.
Provenance
The portrait of Friedrich von Boxberg was owned by the von Boxberg family for a long time, later it was privately owned in Hamburg and Berlin. In 2003 it was offered in the auction catalog of the 60th auction of the Günther auction house in Dresden for € 20,000. It came to the Neue Meister gallery in 2004 with the support of the “Friends of the State Art Collections eV (MUSEIS SAXONICIS USUI)”.
Web links
- Portrait of Friedrich von Boxberg in the online collection of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d Gerd Spitzer (Ed.): Ferdinand von Rayski in the Dresden gallery. Dresden 2006
- ↑ Maräuslein Walter: Ferdinand von Rayski, his life and his work. Bielefeld and Leipzig 1943
- ↑ a b Heinrich August Verlohren (edit.): Family register and chronicle of the Electoral and Royal Saxon Army. Leipzig 1910
- ^ A b Albrecht Graf von Holtzendorff: History of the Royal Saxon Light Infantry, from its establishment to October 1, 1859. Leipzig 1860, p. 284 ff.
- ^ Otto Grautoff: Ferdinand von Rayski. Berlin 1923 (p. 53)
- ^ Ulrich Bischoff (Ed.): Galerie Neue Meister - Illustrated catalog in two volumes - Volume 1. Dresden and Cologne 2010