Eckersberg – A Pioneer of Perspective

C. W. Eckersberg (1783-1853) influenced a whole generation of artists during his own time and is today as popular as ever. Museums and art dealers from all over the world flock to the works by the Danish Golden Age painter, and there are several reasons for this – the artist is not only considered the father of Danish artistic painting but also an exponent of a perspective on art, which pre-empts modern painting and reaches far beyond the borders of Denmark. The two remarkable paintings combine highly central themes in the artist’s oeuvre, including the depiction of moments and the focus on the central perspective.

"View Through a Door" and "A Storm"

The auction's two remarkable works by Eckersberg are both depictions of everyday life in Copenhagen in the mid-1840s, which he reproduces in so-called genre scenes.

In one painting, "View Through a Door to Running Figures," a crowd can be seen running down the street. The motif itself is framed by a doorway, where one can only see a smaller section of the street, which is full of people. The very precise framing of the subject emphasizes the central perspective that directs the eye towards the centre of the painting. A young girl stands in the doorway with the sun on her face and searches for something outside the picture frame. Eckersberg captures the action and creates a moment without a story. As a viewer, you wonder what is really going on and are tempted to add new chapters to the story both before and after the moment depicted in the painting.

In the second piece, "A Storm", Eckersberg has moved out onto the street and been caught in a fierce storm. Here, the perspective is broader. It is aided by the movement of people, the wind in their clothes, the long shadows, the paving of the road and the wall in the background, which leads the viewer’s gaze down the street, where sand is flying in the face of the passersby. Presumably, it is the first time that an artist depicts clouds of dust swirling up from the street in the wind. In his diary, Eckersberg describes the creation of this work. The first time it is mentioned is 12 April 1845: "Planning a small genre scene," and the second time on 16 May 1845: "Worked on and finished a small genre scene "A Storm.”"

Professor Eckersberg and the Perspective

C. W. Eckersberg is one of the truly great figures of Danish art. He was a role model for an entire generation of Danish artists in the first half of the 19th century, where he served as a professor at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen through 35 years – from 1818 until his death in 1853. He was motivated by exquisite artistic perfection and possessed an unrivalled technical talent that indelibly set new standards for painting in Denmark.

As a young man, Eckersberg was educated at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen and was later influenced by his Grand Tour of Europe (1810-16), during which he was taught in Paris by the French Neoclassicist painter Jacques-Louis David, who specialized in figurative and historic painting. Subsequently, Eckersberg went to Rome where he made his first open-air paintings – an approach to painting he passed on to his own students later in life. When he returned to Copenhagen in 1816, he continued his in-depth studies of nature and diligently wrote down different weather conditions, which he would then reproduce in his seascapes, genre scenes, cityscapes and landscapes. He was also the first in Denmark to introduce figure studies with nude women at the Academy. Another of his significant achievements was the publication of his teachings on perspective for educational purposes. With the books ”Forsøg til en Veiledning i Anvendelse af Perspektivlæren for unge Malere” (An Attempt at a Guide to the Use of Perspective for Young Painters) (1833) and “Linearperspektiven, anvendt paa Malerkunsten” (The Linear Perspective Used in the Art of Painting) (1841), Eckersberg approached art scientifically and argued for guiding the students beyond the traditional figure studies and teaching them how to "arrange a composition" with mathematical precision.

In "The Linear Perspective Used in the Art of Painting" (1841) Table VI. Figure III, Eckersberg reproduces a composition as an example of how to emphasize the central perspective with light and shadows. The composition consists of a motif that resembles the featured work of "View Through a Door to Running Figures" (1845). It is clear to see how the art professor here works with his own teachings on perspective in the genre scenes from the mid-1840s. For Eckersberg there was always an interplay between the sensory experience and an underlying order in the artwork. The objects should have the proper proportions and be convincingly placed in relation to each other – completely without a trace of the flat surface on which they were painted. The goal was to create the perfect illusion, as is the case with the two works "View Through a Door to Running Figures" and "A Storm”.

Artwork by Eckersberg’s Student

Eckersberg’s students included some of the Danish Golden Age’s most accomplished artists, and we have works by them all at this auction, including Martinus Rørbye with a travel scene, Christen Købke with a study for a landscape, Fritz Petzholdt with an Italian motif, Dankvart Dreyer with an interior from a church and Adam Müller with a depiction of the Academy’s collection of sculptures.

At this auction, we journey through all of the Danish Golden Age – welcome aboard!

Auction: 28 November at 4 pm at Bredgade 33 in Copenhagen

Preview: 23-27 November at the same address

View all the lots with Danish Golden Age art

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Danish National Heritage

The art of the Danish Golden Age is of great value as both Danish heritage and as part of art history in general. A major work like Eckersberg’s ”View Through a Door to Running Figures” (1845) was characterized as irreplaceable cultural heritage by the Danish state when it was sold in 1998, and the painting could therefore not be taken out of Denmark. Now the work is up for sale again and it is not sure that the verdict will be the same as last time, so everyone is welcome to join the bidding. If the work is acquired by an international buyer, then an export license has to be applied for at the Danish commission on the export of cultural assets. The export license cannot be applied for, before the new hammer price has been determined. Questions can be directed to CEO Jakob Dupont via Tel: +45 8818 1081 or email: dupont@bruun-rasmussen.dk.