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32

Károly Lotz, Oil Sketch ‘Niobe with her Children’, c. 1884

Currency:EUR Category:Collectibles Start Price:2,200.00 EUR Estimated At:3,600.00 - 4,500.00 EUR
Károly Lotz, Oil Sketch ‘Niobe with her Children’, c. 1884
This oil painting by Károly Lotz (1833-1904) shows a mythological scene from Ovid's Metamorphoses. It is a study for a fresco in the auditorium of the Opera House in Budapest (1884). The depiction illustrates the dramatic killing of Niobe’s sons and daughters. The wife of the Theban king Amphion was so proud of her many children (seven sons and seven daughters ) that she dared to surpass the Titan Leto, whereupon Leto asked her son and daughter, Apollo and Arthemis , to kill the sons and daughters of Niobe with bow and arrow in one day. In the opera literature, the subject of Niobe is often quoted, which testifies to the connection of the present study. In his mythological topics, Károly Lotz oriented to the masters of the Venetian Baroque, such as Giovanni Battista Tiepolo. Thus, it is primarily the dramatizing baroque language that Lotz overtook in his works. This is a very nice painting, which, in the composition of color and physical presence, makes the drama of the story of Niobe quite vivid.



The painting comes with a typewritten letter dating to 1927 and signed by Wilhelm von Bode, in which he confirms, that the painting is undeniably an original work of Karl Lotz. The oil sketch executed on paper and mounted on canvas shows some signs of age and wear. The paint surface has some cracks, which were fixed and partly retouched. On the right side, there is a small paint flaking. The gilt wood frame is overall in good condition, showing slight wear marks. The overall dimensions with frame are 57 x 88 cm, the stretcher frame measuring 47 x 78 cm.



Károly Lotz (1833-1904)

Károly Lotz (also Karl Anton Paul Lotz) was an important historical and genre painter. Born in 1833 in Germany, he moved to Budapest in 1837. His artistic career began as a student of court conductor Destouches and later in the Academy of Painting of the Venetian master Jacopo Marastoni. He then studied with the Hungarian history painter Henrik Weber in Budapest and the history painter Carl Rahl (1812-1865) in Vienna. He created romantic landscapes and monumental and decorative murals and frescoes in the style of the Venetian artist Giovanni Battista Tiepolo. He also decorated some grand palaces. He was also known for his portraits and nudes. In 1882, Lotz worked as a professor at various art academies in Budapest. His paintings, drawings and designs were purchased by the Hungarian state and are on display in the Museum of Fine Arts in Budapest. (cko)
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