Leopold Blauensteiner
Encyclopedia
Leopold Blauensteiner was an Austria
n academic painter.
in Melk. As a schoolboy he worked on the restoration of the parish church of Melk.
After leaving school, he spent a year as a volunteer in the army. He then began to study painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna under Professor Christian Griepenkerl
and also studied a few terms of art history. In addition he took private lessons from Alfred Roller, who ran the magazine of the newly formed Vienna Secession
, Ver Sacrum, which in 1903 and 1904 printed some coloured woodcut
s by Blauensteiner. This was the first public appearance of his work.
In 1904 he married Friderika Berger, who bore him three sons. In 1908, he took an active part in the worked actively in the Kunstschau Wien 1908. In 1909 he became a committee member of the "Klimt-Gruppe
", and in 1911 of the Bund Hagen.
In the First World War he joined the Uhlan
s (Lancers), leaving in 1916 with the rank of First Lieutenant
.
In 1924 he was a member of the artists' group "Die Hand", which exhibited in the Zedlitzhalle. He bought a house in Melk, where from 1925 he worked as conservator for the Monuments Office for the District of Melk and painted in his studio. From 1920 he was a member of the Vienna Künstlerhaus
. In 1927 he was awarded the Austrian State Prize. In 1929 for his painting Funeralien ("Funeral Rites at Melk Abbey") he won a scholarship for a year's study in Italy, where he stayed until 1930. In 1932 he was awarded received the State Prize medal and the title of Professor.
In 1933 he joined the National Socialist Party
, but left again after it was banned in Austria, and in 1934 joined the Popular Front
.
In 1937 he became president of the Association of Vienna Artists (Genossenschaft bildender Künstler Wiens) and also of the Permanent Delegation of Austrian Artists (Ständige Delegation bildender Künstler Österreichs). In 1938 he was elected president of the Vienna Künstlerhaus, which he headed until 1941.
In 1939, he reactivated his membership in the Nazi Party and was appointed National Director of the Reich Chamber of Fine Arts (Reichskammer der bildenden Künste) in Vienna. He was soon dismissed from this position, but later reinstated as honorary director. He was able in 1944 to stop the installation of a production unit of the Heinkel
Aircraft Works in the Künstlerhaus. He also prevented the destruction of works of "degenerate art
" (entartete Kunst) by Carry Hauser
, Oskar Kokoschka
, Egon Schiele
and others, which he caused to be stored in the mine workings at Altaussee
.
In 1945 he was arrested on the basis of an accusation by the Russian forces of occupation and was taken before the Vienna Regional Court. After a court hearing in which he was acquitted of National Socialist activities, he was released. He was refused compensation for his detention however as there were "grounds for reasonable suspicion". He died of heart failure in 1947 aged 67.
he designed the fittings of the Vienna State Opera
.
His paintings are mainly privately owned. The former Pollak Gallery in Bern bought many of his pictures. Specimens of his work are to be found in the Österreichische Galerie Belvedere
, the Albertina
, the Museum of the University of Applied Arts Vienna
, Vienna City Hall, the Leopold Museum
in Vienna, the Rupertinum in Salzburg, the Lower Austrian Provincial Museum in Sankt Pölten
and the Musée d'Orsay
in Paris.
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n academic painter.
Biography
Blauensteiner was the son of Leopold Blauensteiner and Johanna Toscano del Banner. His father died shortly after his birth, and his mother died in 1887, leaving him an orphan. He attended the grammar schoolStiftsgymnasium Melk
Stiftsgymnasium Melk is an Austrian Benedictine-run gymnasium in the Lower Austria city of Melk. The Roman Catholic school is set in the well-known monastery Melk Abbey...
in Melk. As a schoolboy he worked on the restoration of the parish church of Melk.
After leaving school, he spent a year as a volunteer in the army. He then began to study painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna under Professor Christian Griepenkerl
Christian Griepenkerl
Christian Griepenkerl was a German painter and professor at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna.Griepenkerl was born to one of Oldenburg's leading families...
and also studied a few terms of art history. In addition he took private lessons from Alfred Roller, who ran the magazine of the newly formed Vienna Secession
Vienna Secession
The Vienna Secession was formed in 1897 by a group of Austrian artists who had resigned from the Association of Austrian Artists, housed in the Vienna Künstlerhaus. This movement included painters, sculptors, and architects...
, Ver Sacrum, which in 1903 and 1904 printed some coloured woodcut
Woodcut
Woodcut—occasionally known as xylography—is a relief printing artistic technique in printmaking in which an image is carved into the surface of a block of wood, with the printing parts remaining level with the surface while the non-printing parts are removed, typically with gouges...
s by Blauensteiner. This was the first public appearance of his work.
In 1904 he married Friderika Berger, who bore him three sons. In 1908, he took an active part in the worked actively in the Kunstschau Wien 1908. In 1909 he became a committee member of the "Klimt-Gruppe
Gustav Klimt
Gustav Klimt was an Austrian Symbolist painter and one of the most prominent members of the Vienna Secession movement. His major works include paintings, murals, sketches, and other art objects...
", and in 1911 of the Bund Hagen.
In the First World War he joined the Uhlan
Uhlan
Uhlans were Polish light cavalry armed with lances, sabres and pistols. The title was later used by lancer regiments in the Russian, Prussian, and Austrian armies....
s (Lancers), leaving in 1916 with the rank of First Lieutenant
First Lieutenant
First lieutenant is a military rank and, in some forces, an appointment.The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations , but the majority of cases it is common for it to be sub-divided into a senior and junior rank...
.
In 1924 he was a member of the artists' group "Die Hand", which exhibited in the Zedlitzhalle. He bought a house in Melk, where from 1925 he worked as conservator for the Monuments Office for the District of Melk and painted in his studio. From 1920 he was a member of the Vienna Künstlerhaus
Vienna Künstlerhaus
The Vienna Künstlerhaus is an art exhibition building in Vienna. It is located on Karlsplatz near the Ringstraße, next to the Musikverein....
. In 1927 he was awarded the Austrian State Prize. In 1929 for his painting Funeralien ("Funeral Rites at Melk Abbey") he won a scholarship for a year's study in Italy, where he stayed until 1930. In 1932 he was awarded received the State Prize medal and the title of Professor.
In 1933 he joined the National Socialist Party
National Socialist Party
Parties in various contexts have referred to themselves as National Socialist parties. Because there is no clear definition of national socialism, the term has been used to mean very different things...
, but left again after it was banned in Austria, and in 1934 joined the Popular Front
Popular front
A popular front is a broad coalition of different political groupings, often made up of leftists and centrists. Being very broad, they can sometimes include centrist and liberal forces as well as socialist and communist groups...
.
In 1937 he became president of the Association of Vienna Artists (Genossenschaft bildender Künstler Wiens) and also of the Permanent Delegation of Austrian Artists (Ständige Delegation bildender Künstler Österreichs). In 1938 he was elected president of the Vienna Künstlerhaus, which he headed until 1941.
In 1939, he reactivated his membership in the Nazi Party and was appointed National Director of the Reich Chamber of Fine Arts (Reichskammer der bildenden Künste) in Vienna. He was soon dismissed from this position, but later reinstated as honorary director. He was able in 1944 to stop the installation of a production unit of the Heinkel
Heinkel
Heinkel Flugzeugwerke was a German aircraft manufacturing company founded by and named after Ernst Heinkel. It is noted for producing bomber aircraft for the Luftwaffe in World War II and for important contributions to high-speed flight.-History:...
Aircraft Works in the Künstlerhaus. He also prevented the destruction of works of "degenerate art
Degenerate art
Degenerate art is the English translation of the German entartete Kunst, a term adopted by the Nazi regime in Germany to describe virtually all modern art. Such art was banned on the grounds that it was un-German or Jewish Bolshevist in nature, and those identified as degenerate artists were...
" (entartete Kunst) by Carry Hauser
Carry Hauser
Carry Hauser, born Carl Maria Hauser , was an Austrian painter, stage set designer and poet.- Life :Carry Hauser was born in Vienna as Carl Maria Hauser into the family of a civil servant...
, Oskar Kokoschka
Oskar Kokoschka
Oskar Kokoschka was an Austrian artist, poet and playwright best known for his intense expressionistic portraits and landscapes.-Biography:...
, Egon Schiele
Egon Schiele
Egon Schiele was an Austrian painter. A protégé of Gustav Klimt, Schiele was a major figurative painter of the early 20th century. His work is noted for its intensity, and the many self-portraits the artist produced...
and others, which he caused to be stored in the mine workings at Altaussee
Altaussee
Altaussee is a small alpine Austrian village, nestled on the shores of the Altaussee lake, beneath the Loser Plateau. Occupying an area of 92 km², the village is home to 1,888 people. Altaussee is within the Salzkammergut region, in the state of Styria....
.
In 1945 he was arrested on the basis of an accusation by the Russian forces of occupation and was taken before the Vienna Regional Court. After a court hearing in which he was acquitted of National Socialist activities, he was released. He was refused compensation for his detention however as there were "grounds for reasonable suspicion". He died of heart failure in 1947 aged 67.
Works
His main works include: Funeralien im Stift Melk ("Funeral Rites at Melk Abbey"), Der tote Sohn ("The Dead Son"), Die Strecke ("The Track"), Symphonie in Blau ("Symphony in Blue"), family pictures and landscapes. Even before World War II half of his oeuvre had been sold. Study trips to Italy, Dalmatia, Lorraine and Germany produced many landscapes. He had exhibitions in Prague, Dresden, Berlin and other cities. Although he worked primarily as a painter, there also exist design for furniture, ornamental gratings, lanterns and similar things. He designed the meeting room of the "Schlaraffia" in Melk. Under the direction of Gustav MahlerGustav Mahler
Gustav Mahler was a late-Romantic Austrian composer and one of the leading conductors of his generation. He was born in the village of Kalischt, Bohemia, in what was then Austria-Hungary, now Kaliště in the Czech Republic...
he designed the fittings of the Vienna State Opera
Vienna State Opera
The Vienna State Opera is an opera house – and opera company – with a history dating back to the mid-19th century. It is located in the centre of Vienna, Austria. It was originally called the Vienna Court Opera . In 1920, with the replacement of the Habsburg Monarchy by the First Austrian...
.
His paintings are mainly privately owned. The former Pollak Gallery in Bern bought many of his pictures. Specimens of his work are to be found in the Österreichische Galerie Belvedere
Österreichische Galerie Belvedere
The Österreichische Galerie Belvedere is a museum housed in the Belvedere palace, in Vienna, Austria.The art collection includes masterpieces from the Middle Ages and Baroque until the 21st century, though it focuses on Austrian painters from the Fin de Siècle and Art Nouveau period...
, the Albertina
Albertina
The Albertina is a museum in Vienna, Austria, containing the world's best collection of old master prints and drawings.Albertina, a feminine adjectival form of Albert , may also refer to:...
, the Museum of the University of Applied Arts Vienna
University of Applied Arts Vienna
The University of Applied Arts Vienna is an institution of higher education in Vienna, the capital of Austria. It has had university status since 1970.-History:...
, Vienna City Hall, the Leopold Museum
Leopold Museum
The Leopold Museum, housed in the Museumsquartier in Vienna, Austria, is home to one of the largest collections of modern Austrian art, featuring artists such as Egon Schiele, Gustav Klimt, Oskar Kokoschka and Richard Gerstl....
in Vienna, the Rupertinum in Salzburg, the Lower Austrian Provincial Museum in Sankt Pölten
Sankt Pölten
Sankt Pölten is the capital city of the State of Lower Austria in northeast Austria. With inhabitants , it is Lower Austria's largest city...
and the Musée d'Orsay
Musée d'Orsay
The Musée d'Orsay is a museum in Paris, France, on the left bank of the Seine. It is housed in the former Gare d'Orsay, an impressive Beaux-Arts railway station built between 1898 and 1900. The museum holds mainly French art dating from 1848 to 1915, including paintings, sculptures, furniture,...
in Paris.