Supported by a two-year travel scholarship from the foundation 'Fonden ad usus publicos', Hans Christian Andersen arrived in Rome on 18 October 1833. Among the first to welcome him were the poet Ludvig Bødtcher (1773–1874) and the painter Albert Küchler.

Küchler had arrived in the eternal city during the autumn of 1830 and had, encouraged by the painter Johan Ludvig Lund (1777–1867), sought out the German artists where he experienced a strong community. Here, he witnessed the initiation of “Sammlung von Bildnissen Deutscher Künstler in Rom” 1832 – a collection of friendship portraits that emphasised the connectedness - socially, artistically and spiritually - of the German artists. Having painted Ludvig Bødtcher already, it was entirely in the German spirit to portray the newly arrived poet and friend Hans Christian Andersen as well.

"A. Kückler paints me at this time, for the sake of friendship and at his own request”, writes Hans Christian Andersen in a letter from 17 December 1833 to the patron Councillor Jonas Collin (1776–1861).

In the poet's travel journal, it appears that Küchler carried out drawn studies from different positions to select the most advantageous angle for his final portrait of the poet (The Museum of National History at Frederiksborg Castle, Inv. No. A 701).

Apart from a small portrait by Adam Müller (1811–1844) drawn in 1833, these studies may be regarded as the earliest known portraits of Hans Christian Andersen. The portrait of the poet with the rapt gaze and upturned eyes, executed with the delicacy of the silverpoint, was Küchler’s personal keepsake.

Andersen referred to the portrait in laudatory terms in his journal 31 January 1834:

“I look more ideal in this; the eyes are turned towards Heaven”.

Hans Christian Andersen was aware of the importance of the right expression. This was emphasized a few years later in his novel O. T. (1836): "We demand of the portrait painter not only that he perceive the person but perceive him in his happiest moment. The ugly as well as the insignificant face the painter should give peculiar beauty. Every person has moments in which something spiritual or characteristic appears. Nature, even the most barren region, has the same moment, shaped by darkness and light. The poet must resemble the painter, he must seize this moment in people, as in nature.”

In 1816, Küchler was admitted to the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen at the age of 12 and he later became a student of Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg (1783–1853). He won the Academy's 'Store Guldmedalje' (the Large Gold Medal), followed by the 3-year travel scholarship. Albert Küchler arrived in Rome in 1830, where he joined the circle of the Nazarene Friedrich Overbeck (1789–1869) - a community that would influence him artistically and religiously. Küchler converted to Catholicism in 1844, and in 1851, he entered the Franciscan order under the name Fra Pietro.

Hans Christian Andersen continued throughout his life to visit Küchler's studio every time he stayed in Rome. However, their friendship cooled after Küchler’s conversion to Catholicism. With annoyance, the poet subsequently wrote about the changed relationship with the friend:

“Several years later, when I came to Rome on my second stay, the youthful spirit was gone [with Küchler], his warmth showing through only now and then [...] Now, as we know, a few years ago he was initiated as a beggar monk of Pius 9 [...] God give him the peace and happiness here, he probably, misunderstanding the all-loving God, on a lost path, seeks- and finds! — When we met, He was for weeks and months the enlivening, loving friend; I remember him best from these early days…”. (Hans Christian Andersen, ”Mit Livs Eventyr" (My Fairy-Tale Life), 1855, Copenhagen 1908, p. 165).

Albert Küchler's final years were characterised by increasing loneliness, discouragement, and not least a failing sight.