Ernest Crofts
Ernest Crofts (born September 15, 1847 in Leeds , Yorkshire , † March 19, 1911 in London ) was an English painter from the Düsseldorf School . He is known for history and battle paintings.
Life
Crofts was the son of the craftsman John Crofts and his wife Ellen Wordsworth. Through his mother, Crofts was related to the poet William Wordsworth .
Croft's artistic abilities were already recognized during his school days. Equipped with a small scholarship, Crofts became a student of the history painter Alfred B. Clay in London . When he died unexpectedly in 1868, Crofts tried to set up his own business as an artist, but failed after a short time.
At the end of 1869 Crofts went to Germany and became a pupil of the painter Emil Hünten in Düsseldorf . He soon met Elisabeth Wüsthofen there, whom he married in Düsseldorf in 1872. He had a daughter with her. From 1882 to 1889 Crofts was a member of the artists' association Malkasten . Together with Henry Enfield , he joined the Düsseldorf rowing club in August 1884 .
He had his artistic breakthrough from around 1872 with depictions from the Franco-German War . One of his first pictures in this genre was the French retreat at Gravelotte . This picture was awarded a prize at an exhibition of the Royal Society in 1874. This success meant that Croft's works were now regularly to be seen at exhibitions of the Royal Society.
In 1878 the Royal Society took Crofts on as an "Associate" and he thanked them with the picture Wellington's march to Waterloo . In 1896 Crofts was made a member and two years later he was given the status of "Keeper".
The painter Ernest Crofts died on March 19, 1911 in London at the age of 63. He found his final resting place in the Kensal Green cemetery. On 19 December of the same year Crofts widow left the entire artistic estate (including the studio) from the auction house Christie's auction.
Croft's works are characterized by clear political and historical statements. He always attached great importance to mood, such as the effect of light and shadow, landscape, etc. and never forgot the accuracy of the representation down to the details.
Works (selection)
- Retreat of the French near Gravelotte (around 1873), scene of the shelling of a French infantry unit in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870/1817, Museum Kunstpalast , Düsseldorf
- Battle of Ligny (1875)
- Morning of the battle of Waterloo (1876)
- Evening of the battle of Waterloo (1879)
- The empty saddle (1882)
- Napoleon and the Old Guard at Waterloo (1895)
photos
Wallenstein: A scene from the Thirty Years War, 1884
Napoleon's last major attack at Waterloo in 1895
Oliver Cromwell at the Battle of Marston Moore, 1877
Memorial plaque at Crofts, Holy Trinity Blythburgh
literature
- Maurice W. Brockwell : Crofts, Ernest . In: Ulrich Thieme (Hrsg.): General Lexicon of Fine Artists from Antiquity to the Present . Founded by Ulrich Thieme and Felix Becker . tape 8 : Coutan-Delattre . EA Seemann, Leipzig 1912, p. 146 ( Textarchiv - Internet Archive ).
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Bettina Baumgärtel (ed.): The Düsseldorf School of Painting and its international impact 1819–1918 . Michael Imhof Verlag, Petersberg 2011, ISBN 978-3-86568-702-9 , Volume 2, p. 290 (Catalog No. 243)
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Crofts, Ernest |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Crofts, John Ernest |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | English painter |
| DATE OF BIRTH | September 15, 1847 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Leeds |
| DATE OF DEATH | March 19, 1911 |
| Place of death | London |