JOHANN VON SCRAUDOLPH (Germany, 1808 - 1879). "Drawing... Lot 13

JOHANN VON SCRAUDOLPH (Germany, 1808 - 1879). "Drawing for the frescoes in Spire Cathedral". Graphite and chalk on paper. Signed and dedicated in the lower left area, Measurements: 44 x 34 cm. From the finish of this piece it is possible that the work is intended to be done in preparation for a finished piece, or as visual notes. Studies are often used to understand the problems involved in representing subject matter and to plan the elements to be used in finished works, such as light, colour, form, perspective and composition. Studies can have more impact than more elaborately planned work, because of the new insights the artist gains as he or she explores the subject. Such details help reveal the thought processes and techniques of many artists. Studies even go back to the early Italian Renaissance, from where art historians have kept some of Michelangelo's studies. Johann von Schraudolph was a German painter of the Nazarene movement. His brother Matthias and son Claudius were also painters. As a pupil and assistant to Heinrich Maria von Hess, he painted five scenes from the life of Saint Boniface in the Munich Abbey. Schraudolph also painted several devotional paintings, some of which became very popular, among them: Madonna and Child, St Agnes, Jesus and the Children. During the construction of the cathedral in the years between 1846 and 1853, Schraudolph always kept the group of his assistants (his brother, Claudius, Hellweger, Mayer, and others) in strict subordination, retaining for himself the design of all the compositions, the main dome, the three choirs, and most of the affresci for the nave, drawing cartoons and most importantly, painting the same complicated scenes for him. On Hess's recommendation he received an important commission from King Ludwig I of Bavaria: To create the frescoes for Spira Cathedral. Although he had already been to Italy once and had made numerous copies of the old masters, he felt the need to make a new trip to Rome, given the importance of the work entrusted to him. The "realisation of the Divine Plan of salvation" is the key to interpreting all the frescoes with particular reference to the life of the Blessed Virgin and that of the other patron saints of the cathedral: the Deacon Stephen, Pope Stephen I and St. Bernard. After the completion of this important work, Schraudolph gained the favour of the king, who often came to his studio to admire numerous oil paintings produced by him, and sometimes bought them for himself or for the former picture gallery in Munich.