Neoclassicism and Romanticism

 

(Neoclassicism, Romanticism and Art Styles in 19th century - Art Map)



 

Johann Friedrich Overbeck



 

Johann Friedrich Overbeck

born July 3, 1789, Imperial Free City of Lübeck
died Nov. 12, 1869, Rome

Romantic painter of Christian religioussubjects, who was leader of a group of German artists known as the Nazarenes, or Lucas Brotherhood (Lukasbund).
In 1806 Overbeck entered the Academy of Vienna, where, disappointed in the academic approach to teaching, he and Franz Pforr in 1809 founded theLucas Brotherhood. They sought to revive the medieval artists' guilds and to renew the arts through Christian faith (in 1813 Overbeck joined the Roman Catholic Church). For artistic inspiration they turned to Albrecht Dürer and to Italian Renaissance art, particularly the works of Perugino and early Raphael.
In 1810 the Lucas Brotherhood went to Rome. Their style wascharacterized by precise outlines; clear, bright colours; and an emphasis on Christian symbolism. Communally, the brotherhood executed the frescoes of “Joseph Sold by His Brethren” at the Casa Bartholdy (1816) and the interior pavilion (1817–29) at the Villa Massimo in Rome. In the Portiuncula Chapel at Assisi, Overbeck painted “Rose Miracle of St. Francis” (1829), usually considered his major work.
As he advanced in years, Overbeck's painting became pallid and stereotyped. Yet these late works greatly influenced Christian devotional art of the 19th century and the paintingsof the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. His more vital early pictures and drawings, however, were rediscovered and appreciated early in the 20th century.


 

Maria und Elisabeth mit dem Jesus- und Johannesknaben