Johann Gottfried Schadow : Embracing Forms

Johann Gottfried Schadow’s Princess group has gone down in the annals of art history. As the first statue of two female historical personalities it testifies to the innovation, enormous artistry and productivity of sculpture workshops in the 19th century – a symbol of the important sculpture of German Classicism. In around 1800 Johann Gottfried Schadow (1764–1850) was the most famous artist in Prussia. More than most others he knew how to combine the outstanding position as court sculptor with entrepreneurial success and a steady bourgeois existence, and thereby to cultivate an international network. The artist himself modelled, drew, wrote art-theoretical treatises and was the head of the Berlin Academy, one of the most important art schools of the time. The monograph opens new perspectives onto the brilliant creativity of the great sculptor and his workshop.

New perspectives on a noteworthy sculptor within German Classicism.
 
Johann Gottfried Schadow (1764–1850) was once the most famous artist in Prussia. This book, edited by Yvette Deseyve and featuring a contribution by Sintje Guericke, uncovers new aspects of Schadow’s art and workshop.
 
After training with a prominent court sculptor, Jean-Pierre-Antoine Tassaert, Schadow eventually became the secretary of the Prussian Academy of Art and the founder of the Berlin School of Sculpture. An entrepreneurial success, Schadow enjoyed a steady, bourgeois existence as well as several extraordinary artistic achievements. His most important works include the chariot atop the Brandenberg Gate and The Princess Group, a life-size depiction of Prussian Crown Princess Luise and her sister Friederike. This statue, notable in part because it depicts women from history, has since gained renown as a monumental work of Early Classicism. Johann Gottfried Schadow: Embracing Forms shares fresh insights into the artist’s career, studio, and legacy.