German Landscape and Architectural Painter. The son of a brewer, as a youth he demonstrated an interest in art and at the age of thirteen, he enrolled at the Städelschule under Friedrich Maximillian Hessemer. He originally planned to become an architect but discovered that he was more interested in Hessemer's architectural drawings so he switched to painting, with Heinrich von Rustige as instructor. After leaving the school in 1846, he engaged in several study trips, ranging from Paris, France to Bohemia and Italy. He soon achieved great success as a painter and, in 1858, became a corresponding member of the "Cercle Artistique" in Guent, Belgium. He was awarded the Medal for Art at the Vienna World Exposition, in 1873 and his evocative landscapes earned him the nickname "Malenden Dichters" (The Painting Poet). Many of his commissions came from the Rhein-Main region of Germany, but he also received an order destined for British Queen Victoria in memory of her step-brother, Prince Karl von Leinngen. A prolific artist, he preferred using watercolors, and his known paintings number over 2,000. Among his noted works include "Tuchgaden" (1862) and "St. John's Church" (1871). He died at the age of 73.
German Landscape and Architectural Painter. The son of a brewer, as a youth he demonstrated an interest in art and at the age of thirteen, he enrolled at the Städelschule under Friedrich Maximillian Hessemer. He originally planned to become an architect but discovered that he was more interested in Hessemer's architectural drawings so he switched to painting, with Heinrich von Rustige as instructor. After leaving the school in 1846, he engaged in several study trips, ranging from Paris, France to Bohemia and Italy. He soon achieved great success as a painter and, in 1858, became a corresponding member of the "Cercle Artistique" in Guent, Belgium. He was awarded the Medal for Art at the Vienna World Exposition, in 1873 and his evocative landscapes earned him the nickname "Malenden Dichters" (The Painting Poet). Many of his commissions came from the Rhein-Main region of Germany, but he also received an order destined for British Queen Victoria in memory of her step-brother, Prince Karl von Leinngen. A prolific artist, he preferred using watercolors, and his known paintings number over 2,000. Among his noted works include "Tuchgaden" (1862) and "St. John's Church" (1871). He died at the age of 73.
Bio by: William Bjornstad
Advertisement
See more Reiffenstein memorials in:
Explore more
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
