Ernestine Friedrichsen (29 June 1824,
Danzig - 21 July 1892,
Düsseldorf) was a German
genre painter; primarily of family scenes.
Biography
Little is known about her early life. In the 1850s, she took private art lessons in Düsseldorf with
Marie Wiegmann; focusing on portrait painting. Later, she studied with
Wilhelm Sohn and learned genre painting from
Rudolf Jordan.[1]
She made numerous study trips, to Holland, Belgium, England and Italy, as well as to places within Germany, such as
Holstein,
Bavaria and
Masuria, which she found especially amenable as a source of inspiration. The
January Uprising and the Jewish communities in Poland were also recurring motifs in her work.
Her first showing came in 1861 at an academic exhibition in Dresden. After that, she took part in various exhibitions of the
Kunstverein für die Rheinlande und Westfalen [
de]. She maintained a private studio in Düsseldorf from 1867 until her death.[2]
She was also a member of the
Verein der Berliner Künstlerinnen, an association of female artists. In 1884, Kaiser
Wilhelm I purchased her painting, "Sommerlust". By that time, her works had become collectors' items outside of Germany.[3] Eventually, she exhibited in
Dresden,
Berlin,
Munich and
Hamburg.
References
^Bettina Baumgärtel, Sabine Schroyen, Lydia Immerheiser, Sabine Teichgröb: "Verzeichnis der ausländischen Künstler und Künstlerinnen. Nationalität, Aufenthalt und Studium in Düsseldorf". In: Bettina Baumgärtel (Ed.): Die Düsseldorfer Malerschule und ihre internationale Ausstrahlung 1819–1918.
Michael Imhof Verlag, Petersberg 2011,
ISBN978-3-86568-702-9, Vol.1, pg.430
"Friedrichsen, Ernestine". In: Hermann Alexander Müller: Biographisches Künstler-Lexikon. Die bekanntesten Zeitgenossen auf dem Gebiet der bildenden Künste aller Länder mit Angabe ihrer Werke. Bibliographisches Institut, Leipzig 1882, pg.186.
Ariane Neuhaus-Koch (Ed.): Dem Vergessen entgegen. Frauen in der Geistesgeschichte Düsseldorfs. Lebensbilder und Chroniken. Ahasvera-Verlag, Neuss 1989,
ISBN3-927720-01-1, pgs.35–36.
"Friedrichsen, Ernestine". In: Allgemeines Künstlerlexikon. Die Bildenden Künstler aller Zeiten und Völker. Vol.45. Saur, München, Leipzig 2005, pg.177.