An Evening at the Royal Theatre by Paul Gustav Fischer
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Theater patrons take their seat as the Danish Royal family looks on in this painting by Paul Fischer
Key Features
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- A night at the Danish Royal Theater is beautifully captured by artist Paul Gustav Fischer
- The Danish Royal family can be seen observing the activity in the audience below
- Fischer's paintings reflected facets of urban life
- Fischer's works were exhibited regularly in the Salons of Paris and Brussels, among others
- Signed and dated "Paul Fischer 1887-88" (lower right); Oil on canvas
- Canvas: 86 5/8" high x 67 3/4" wide; Frame: 97 1/8" high x 78 1/4" wide
Item Details
- Width:
C:67 3/4" F:78 1/4" Inches - Height:
C:86 5/8" F:97 1/8" Inches - Period:
19th Century - Origin:
Other Europe - Subject:
Miscellaneous - Artist:
Other
Paul Gustav Fischer
1860-1934 · Danish
An Evening at the Royal Theatre, Copenhagen
Signed and dated "Paul Fischer 1887-88" (lower right)
Oil on canvas
A beautifully detailed composition by Danish artist Paul Gustav Fischer, a talented Danish painter of the late 19th century. Fischer began his career studying art at the renowned Academy of Copenhagen where his portraits and genre paintings were exhibited regularly. This work is a superior example of late 19th-century Danish painting from an admired artist.
Inspired by his many travels to Paris between the 1870s and 1890s, Fischer began incorporating elements he saw in the works of the French Impressionists into his own paintings-not just in technical terms, but in subject as well. His compositions soon reflected facets of modern life in the city, with brilliant depictions of bustling streets, public squares and social events, such as the case with the current painting entitled An Evening at the Royal Theatre, Copenhagen. The more relaxed brushwork and intimate perspective are clear influences of the Impressionists. As the audience fills the theater, the Royal Family, presumably King Christian IX and his wife Louise of Hesse-Kassel among others, watch the activity from their private balcony.
The son of the artist Phillip Fischer, Paul Gustave Fischer was born in Copenhagen into a Polish Jewish family, and was part of the fourth generation of this family to live in Denmark.He began to paint when he was still young, guided by his father. He became a pupil of C. Möller, but was formally educated in art for only a short time in his mid teens when he spent two years at the Royal Danish Academy of Art in 1876. His first breakthrough came in 1882 when he created illustrations for the magazine Ude og hjemme.
It was not long before Fischer gained fame as a painter of cities, not just Copenhagen, but scenes from Scandinavia, Italy and Germany. He benefited from contemporaries in Norway and Sweden, especially Carl Larsson. Besides Paris, Fischer traveled and worked extensively in Germany and Italy. The artist's greatest triumph came when Denmark transferred the sovereignty of Norway back to the Norwegians, and he was awarded the royal commission by King Haakon of Norway to paint the event over the more prominent painter Laurits Tuxen.
Canvas: 86 5/8" high x 67 3/4" wide
Frame: 97 1/8" high x 78 1/4" wide
Provenance:
Sotheby's, London, June 19, 1984, lot 83, illustrated;
Private collection, West Coast, United States
An Evening at the Royal Theatre has been exhibited:
Copenhagen, Kunstforeningen, Dengan i 80 'erne, Danske miljoer I Malerkunsten, 1880-1890, November-December 1983. no. 20.
Artist's Select Exhibitions:
Charlottenborg Palace, Copenhagen, Denmark 1884-1911
Paris Salon, 1890
Chicago, 1893, 1895 and 1900
Aarhus, Denmark, 1894
Baltica-Skandinavia, 1910
Gallery Bergenholz, 1923
Artist's Museums:
Musée de Hillerd, Frederiksborg
Københavns Bymuseum, Denmark
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
References:
Dictionnaire des Peintres, Sculpteurs, Dessinateurs et Graveurs, 1976, E. Bénézit
Davenport's Art Reference and Price Guide, 1994, R. J. Davenport
1860-1934 · Danish
An Evening at the Royal Theatre, Copenhagen
Signed and dated "Paul Fischer 1887-88" (lower right)
Oil on canvas
A beautifully detailed composition by Danish artist Paul Gustav Fischer, a talented Danish painter of the late 19th century. Fischer began his career studying art at the renowned Academy of Copenhagen where his portraits and genre paintings were exhibited regularly. This work is a superior example of late 19th-century Danish painting from an admired artist.
Inspired by his many travels to Paris between the 1870s and 1890s, Fischer began incorporating elements he saw in the works of the French Impressionists into his own paintings-not just in technical terms, but in subject as well. His compositions soon reflected facets of modern life in the city, with brilliant depictions of bustling streets, public squares and social events, such as the case with the current painting entitled An Evening at the Royal Theatre, Copenhagen. The more relaxed brushwork and intimate perspective are clear influences of the Impressionists. As the audience fills the theater, the Royal Family, presumably King Christian IX and his wife Louise of Hesse-Kassel among others, watch the activity from their private balcony.
The son of the artist Phillip Fischer, Paul Gustave Fischer was born in Copenhagen into a Polish Jewish family, and was part of the fourth generation of this family to live in Denmark.He began to paint when he was still young, guided by his father. He became a pupil of C. Möller, but was formally educated in art for only a short time in his mid teens when he spent two years at the Royal Danish Academy of Art in 1876. His first breakthrough came in 1882 when he created illustrations for the magazine Ude og hjemme.
It was not long before Fischer gained fame as a painter of cities, not just Copenhagen, but scenes from Scandinavia, Italy and Germany. He benefited from contemporaries in Norway and Sweden, especially Carl Larsson. Besides Paris, Fischer traveled and worked extensively in Germany and Italy. The artist's greatest triumph came when Denmark transferred the sovereignty of Norway back to the Norwegians, and he was awarded the royal commission by King Haakon of Norway to paint the event over the more prominent painter Laurits Tuxen.
Canvas: 86 5/8" high x 67 3/4" wide
Frame: 97 1/8" high x 78 1/4" wide
Provenance:
Sotheby's, London, June 19, 1984, lot 83, illustrated;
Private collection, West Coast, United States
An Evening at the Royal Theatre has been exhibited:
Copenhagen, Kunstforeningen, Dengan i 80 'erne, Danske miljoer I Malerkunsten, 1880-1890, November-December 1983. no. 20.
Artist's Select Exhibitions:
Charlottenborg Palace, Copenhagen, Denmark 1884-1911
Paris Salon, 1890
Chicago, 1893, 1895 and 1900
Aarhus, Denmark, 1894
Baltica-Skandinavia, 1910
Gallery Bergenholz, 1923
Artist's Museums:
Musée de Hillerd, Frederiksborg
Københavns Bymuseum, Denmark
Los Angeles County Museum of Art
References:
Dictionnaire des Peintres, Sculpteurs, Dessinateurs et Graveurs, 1976, E. Bénézit
Davenport's Art Reference and Price Guide, 1994, R. J. Davenport
