Matthias Steinl
Encyclopedia
Matthias Steinl (c. 1644–18 April 1727) was an Austria
n painter, architect and designer, and one of the country's best known Baroque
sculptors. Together with Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach
(1656–1723) and his rival Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt
(1668–1765), Steinl may be considered one of the most influential architects to introduce the High Baroque style to Austria.
He probably originated from the area round Salzburg
and probably trained as a craftsman and artist in Austria, although he may have learned to sculpt in the Netherlands
and in Prague
.
The Victoria and Albert Museum
in London
has one of his earliest identified sculptures, an ivory statuette of a triton
(c.1670-1675).
He was definitely employed in the 1670s as a sculptor in Leubus Abbey (now Lubiąż) in the Lower Silesian Voivodship, where he took over the workshop of the deceased sculptor Matthias Knote, whose widow he married in 1677. Most of his works here (the main altar, side altars, the pulpit and the choir stalls) were destroyed after World War II
.
Steinl directed this workshop till 1682, when he moved to Breslau, where the prince-bishop recommended him to the court in Vienna. During his stay in Breslau he provided the sculptures on the high altar of Heinrichau Abbey (now Henryków). He also started as a designer sketching cartouches, garlands and tendrils.
In 1688 in Vienna he became the ivory
engraver for the emperor
. From this period dates the exceptional carving Allegory of the elements water and air, made out of a walrus
tusk (c. 1688-1690); and the ivory equestrian statues of Leopold I
(1690–1693) and Joseph I
(dated 1693)
From the 1690s Steinl also directed an important sculpture workshop in Vienna that produced many religious objects, among them the following:
Around 1688, Steinl became more interested in architecture. The Swedish National Museum of Fine Arts
in Stockholm
has a design by him of a belvedere
for Schönbrunn Palace
in Vienna. He also worked on a design for Starhemberg Palace (1702), also near Vienna.
He was one of the first to use the Late Baroque style, in the manner of Francesco Borromini
, in Austria, as architect of the church of Laxenburg
, close to Vienna, although the level of his contribution here has been disputed. This church was the first building north of the Alps to contain swung façade elements characteristic of the High Baroque. It was built between 1693 and 1703 by Carlo Antonio Carlone and continued between 1703 and 1724 by Steinl. The rich Baroque façade of the Carmelite church in Sankt Pölten
, Austria, was built by the famous Baroque architect Jakob Prandtauer
(c. 1708), but Steinl seems to have been involved in the design. His tower façade of the Dorotheakirche (1702–1704) in Vienna no longer exists.
His architectonic designs were mostly realised by Josef Munggenast
(1680–1741), nephew of Jakob Prandtauer.
Around this period Steinl seems largely to have ceased his direct participation in his sculpture workshop, but he still produced the occasional piece, as attested by the statues for the crypt altar of the Capuchin church
in Vienna (c. 1715). He also continued to work as imperial ivory engraver until at least 1712, producing two further major works : the equestrian statuette of Emperor Charles VI
(now in the Schatzkammer (Vienna)
and the portrait relief of the Bishop of Breslau Franz Ludwig von Pfalz-Neuburg
(now at the Bavarian National Museum
, Munich).
After being appointed imperial engineer for buildings and gardens (Kaiserlicher Bau-und-Hof-Ingenieur) he applied himself to the design of interior decorations for monasteries and churches, including the following:
Among Steinl's later creations as architect were the tower of the Augustine church at Dürnstein
(1721–1725) and the tower of the monastery church of Zwettl Abbey (1722–1728). These were constructed in somewhat altered form by Josef Muggenast, after Steinl's death in 1727.
Steinl also created many altars, pulpits and portals in churches in Vienna and other places in Austria, such as Lambach
and Gutenstein
.
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 painter, architect and designer, and one of the country's best known Baroque
Baroque art
Baroque painting is the painting associated with the Baroque cultural movement. The movement is often identified with Absolutism, the Counter Reformation and Catholic Revival, but the existence of important Baroque art and architecture in non-absolutist and Protestant states throughout Western...
sculptors. Together with Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach
Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach
----Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach, born Johann Bernhard Fischer was probably the most influential Austrian architect of the Baroque period....
(1656–1723) and his rival Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt
Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt
Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt was an Italian-trained Austrian architect who designed many stately buildings and churches...
(1668–1765), Steinl may be considered one of the most influential architects to introduce the High Baroque style to Austria.
Salzburg
-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...
and probably trained as a craftsman and artist in Austria, although he may have learned to sculpt in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
and in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
.
The Victoria and Albert Museum
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum , set in the Brompton district of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England, is the world's largest museum of decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 4.5 million objects...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
has one of his earliest identified sculptures, an ivory statuette of a triton
Triton (mythology)
Triton is a mythological Greek god, the messenger of the big sea. He is the son of Poseidon, god of the sea, and Amphitrite, goddess of the sea, whose herald he is...
(c.1670-1675).
He was definitely employed in the 1670s as a sculptor in Leubus Abbey (now Lubiąż) in the Lower Silesian Voivodship, where he took over the workshop of the deceased sculptor Matthias Knote, whose widow he married in 1677. Most of his works here (the main altar, side altars, the pulpit and the choir stalls) were destroyed after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Steinl directed this workshop till 1682, when he moved to Breslau, where the prince-bishop recommended him to the court in Vienna. During his stay in Breslau he provided the sculptures on the high altar of Heinrichau Abbey (now Henryków). He also started as a designer sketching cartouches, garlands and tendrils.
In 1688 in Vienna he became the ivory
Ivory
Ivory is a term for dentine, which constitutes the bulk of the teeth and tusks of animals, when used as a material for art or manufacturing. Ivory has been important since ancient times for making a range of items, from ivory carvings to false teeth, fans, dominoes, joint tubes, piano keys and...
engraver for the emperor
Holy Roman Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor is a term used by historians to denote a medieval ruler who, as German King, had also received the title of "Emperor of the Romans" from the Pope...
. From this period dates the exceptional carving Allegory of the elements water and air, made out of a walrus
Walrus
The walrus is a large flippered marine mammal with a discontinuous circumpolar distribution in the Arctic Ocean and sub-Arctic seas of the Northern Hemisphere. The walrus is the only living species in the Odobenidae family and Odobenus genus. It is subdivided into three subspecies: the Atlantic...
tusk (c. 1688-1690); and the ivory equestrian statues of Leopold I
Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor
| style="float:right;" | Leopold I was a Holy Roman Emperor, King of Hungary and King of Bohemia. A member of the Habsburg family, he was the second son of Emperor Ferdinand III and his first wife, Maria Anna of Spain. His maternal grandparents were Philip III of Spain and Margaret of Austria...
(1690–1693) and Joseph I
Joseph I, Holy Roman Emperor
Joseph I , Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia, King of Hungary, King of the Romans was the elder son of Emperor Leopold I and his third wife, Eleonor Magdalene of Neuburg....
(dated 1693)
From the 1690s Steinl also directed an important sculpture workshop in Vienna that produced many religious objects, among them the following:
- the interior decoration for the chapel of the Hofburg (now destroyed);
- the Dominican churchDominikanerkirche (Vienna)The Church of St. Maria Rotunda, also known as Vienna's Dominican Church , is an early Baroque parish church and minor basilica in the historic center of Vienna, Austria...
in Vienna: the pulpit (1700); - the Peterskirche in Vienna: the pulpit, side altars, pews and confessionals (1726) (he had already designed the dome of this church in 1715-16);
- the Franciscan church in Vienna: the altar;
- the pilgrimage church of HietzingHietzingHietzing is the 13th municipal District of Vienna . It is located west of the central districts, west of Meidling...
, Vienna: the high altar and two side altars (1698); - the statue Immaculata (1688), now at the Liebighaus in Frankfurt am Main;
- St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna: two altars (1700 and 1708) with stone sculptures.
Around 1688, Steinl became more interested in architecture. The Swedish National Museum of Fine Arts
Swedish National Museum of Fine Arts
-External links:*...
in Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
has a design by him of a belvedere
Belvedere (structure)
Belvedere is an architectural term adopted from Italian , which refers to any architectural structure sited to take advantage of such a view. A belvedere may be built in the upper part of a building so as to command a fine view...
for Schönbrunn Palace
Schönbrunn Palace
Schönbrunn Palace is a former imperial 1,441-room Rococo summer residence in Vienna, Austria. One of the most important cultural monuments in the country, since the 1960s it has been one of the major tourist attractions in Vienna...
in Vienna. He also worked on a design for Starhemberg Palace (1702), also near Vienna.
He was one of the first to use the Late Baroque style, in the manner of Francesco Borromini
Francesco Borromini
Francesco Borromini, byname of Francesco Castelli was an architect from Ticino who, with his contemporaries, Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Pietro da Cortona, was a leading figure in the emergence of Roman Baroque architecture.A keen student of the architecture of Michelangelo and the ruins of...
, in Austria, as architect of the church of Laxenburg
Laxenburg
Laxenburg is a town in the district of Mödling in the Austrian state of Lower Austria, near Vienna.- History :The place is well-known for its castle, Schloss Laxenburg, which, beside Schönbrunn, was the most important summer seat of the Habsburg dynasty....
, close to Vienna, although the level of his contribution here has been disputed. This church was the first building north of the Alps to contain swung façade elements characteristic of the High Baroque. It was built between 1693 and 1703 by Carlo Antonio Carlone and continued between 1703 and 1724 by Steinl. The rich Baroque façade of the Carmelite church 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...
, Austria, was built by the famous Baroque architect Jakob Prandtauer
Jakob Prandtauer
Jakob Prandtauer was an Austrian Baroque architect....
(c. 1708), but Steinl seems to have been involved in the design. His tower façade of the Dorotheakirche (1702–1704) in Vienna no longer exists.
His architectonic designs were mostly realised by Josef Munggenast
Josef Munggenast
Josef Munggenast was an Austrian architect and masterbuilder of the Baroque period.Munggenast was born in Schnann in Tyrol, the nephew of Jakob Prandtauer, who advanced his career and whose influence marked his style for the whole of his life.From 1717 Munggenast was master mason in Sankt Pölten...
(1680–1741), nephew of Jakob Prandtauer.
Around this period Steinl seems largely to have ceased his direct participation in his sculpture workshop, but he still produced the occasional piece, as attested by the statues for the crypt altar of the Capuchin church
Kapuzinerkirche
The Capuchin Church in Vienna is the church and monastery of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin. It is located on the Neuer Markt square in the Innere Stadt, near the imperial Hofburg Palace. The official name is Church of St...
in Vienna (c. 1715). He also continued to work as imperial ivory engraver until at least 1712, producing two further major works : the equestrian statuette of Emperor Charles VI
Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles VI was the penultimate Habsburg sovereign of the Habsburg Empire. He succeeded his elder brother, Joseph I, as Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia , Hungary and Croatia , Archduke of Austria, etc., in 1711...
(now in the Schatzkammer (Vienna)
Schatzkammer (Vienna)
The Imperial Treasury in Vienna, Austria is located in the Hofburg with its entrance at the Schweizerhof , the oldest part of the palace rebuilt in a Renaissance style under Emperor Ferdinand I...
and the portrait relief of the Bishop of Breslau Franz Ludwig von Pfalz-Neuburg
Franz Ludwig von Pfalz-Neuburg
Franz Ludwig von Pfalz-Neuburg was bishop and archbishop of several dioceses, prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire, and Hochmeister of the Teutonic Order....
(now at the Bavarian National Museum
Bavarian National Museum
The Bavarian National Museum in Munich is one of the most important cultural history museums in Europe.-Building and History:...
, Munich).
After being appointed imperial engineer for buildings and gardens (Kaiserlicher Bau-und-Hof-Ingenieur) he applied himself to the design of interior decorations for monasteries and churches, including the following:
- Vorau Abbey: the high altar (created by the sculptors J. F. Caspar and G. Niedermayr) and the entire interior (1699–1704); pulpit (1706) (this work is considered as the first High Baroque decoration in Austria with a stylistic and iconographic unity);
- Klosterneuburg Priory: a monstranceMonstranceA monstrance is the vessel used in the Roman Catholic, Old Catholic, and Anglican churches to display the consecrated Eucharistic host, during Eucharistic adoration or Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. Created in the medieval period for the public display of relics, the monstrance today is...
(1710); the triumphal arches, choir decorations (together with Donato Felice d'AllioDonato Felice d'AllioDonato Felice d'Allio was an Austrian architect of the Baroque....
) and an altar (1714); the Baroque refurbishment of the main hall (1725–27) - Herzogenburg PrioryHerzogenburg PrioryHerzogenburg Priory is a monastery of the Augustinian Canons in Herzogenburg in Lower Austria.-History:The monastery was founded in 1112 by Ulrich I, Bishop of Passau, at St. Georgen an der Traisen, now in Traismauer, at the confluence of the Traisen with the Danube. In 1244 because of frequent...
: a monstrance (1722). Steinl also made the designs for the reconstruction of the church here c. 1700; - Zwettl AbbeyZwettl AbbeyZwettl Abbey is a Cistercian monastery located in Zwettl in Lower Austria, in the Diocese of St. Pölten.- History :Zwettl Abbey was founded in 1137 by Hademar I of Kuenring, with Herrmann, a monk of Heiligenkreuz Abbey, as its first abbot . It was a daughter house of Heiligenkreuz, of the line of...
: choir decorations.
Among Steinl's later creations as architect were the tower of the Augustine church at Dürnstein
Dürnstein
Dürnstein is a small town on the Danube river in the Krems-Land district, in the Austrian state of Lower Austria. It is one of the most visited tourist destinations in the Wachau region and also a well-known wine growing area...
(1721–1725) and the tower of the monastery church of Zwettl Abbey (1722–1728). These were constructed in somewhat altered form by Josef Muggenast, after Steinl's death in 1727.
Lambach
Lambach is a market town in the Wels-Land district of Upper Austria, Austria, on the Ager and Traun Rivers. It has a population of 3,242 as of 2001. A major stop on the salt trade, it is the site of the Lambach Abbey, built around 1056.-Notable inhabitants:...
and Gutenstein
Gutenstein (Austria)
Gutenstein is a market town with 1,402 inhabitants in Wiener Neustadt-Land, Lower Austria, Austria....
.