Humor and satire were a feature of his art
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“Italy has made an extraordinary impression on me; all the beautiful things I have seen on the other side of the Alps seem nothing to me compared to this, and to Rome in particular, this unrivalled city with its immortal memories of the greatness of an age which we can barely comprehend. In the beginning, one’s head is bewildered by the multitude of images and ideas which intrude and then displace one another – it becomes empty again and the imagination stands still. I have no idea where to begin.” (Letter to Edvard Collin, 1837) Marstrand studied at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen from 1825-1833, where he was a student of C.W. Eckersberg, among others. In his early years, he mainly painted genre paintings and scenes from everyday life in Copenhagen, but he also painted many portraits of his family and circle of friends as well as commissions for the Copenhagen bourgeoisie. In 1836, he received a travel grant and travelled to Rome, via Berlin, Dresden and Munich. He made several trips to France, England and Germany throughout his life, but he returnedto Italy several times, which became very important to him. Unlike many of his fellow artists who also travelled to Italy, it was not the architecture and nature that interested him, but the people. During his stays he painted many lively and colourful scenes of Italian everyday life. It was these depictions of everyday life and anecdotal genre scenes in particular that Marstrand became known for. Humour and satire were a feature of his art, and he used literary sources for his paintings on various occasions. When he returned from his first trip to Italy in 1841, he worked with motifs from Ludvig Holberg’s comedies, among other things. Later in life, he also embraced biblical motifs and history painting. In 1858, he painted the altarpiece in Faaborg Church, and in 1859, he took over the decoration of Christian IV’s chapel in Roskilde Cathedral. Marstrand was also an industrious drawer, and he left behind countless drawings, including many caricatures. In 1848, he became a professor at the Academy of Arts, and in the years from 1853–57 and from 1863 until his death, he was also the director. |
