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Wilhelm Marstrand prints are full of people enjoying life: Romans celebrating in the streets, Swedish villagers rowing to church, Copenhagen families gathered at home. Marstrand was one of the best-known painters of the Danish Golden Age, with a sharp eye for crowds, humor and everyday stories. This collection brings together art prints of his Italian festivals, Danish portraits, theater scenes from Holberg's comedies and his many lively sketches.

About Wilhelm Marstrand

Wilhelm Marstrand was born in Copenhagen on 24 December 1810, the son of an instrument maker and inventor. He had little interest in books and left school at about 16 to study at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts under Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg, a close friend of his father. From 1826 to 1833 he trained there, already drawn to the daily life of Copenhagen's streets.

His early patron, the court wine merchant Christian Waagepetersen, gave him important commissions, including a musical evening at the Waagepetersen home in 1834. Marstrand won both of the Academy's silver medals in 1833 but never the gold medal. The Academy still granted him a travel stipend, and in 1836 he set off for Rome.

He spent four years in Italy and returned several times, the last in 1869. He became a member of the Academy in 1843, a professor in 1848, and later served as its director. He taught many younger painters, including P.S. Krøyer and Carl Bloch, and died in Copenhagen on 25 March 1873.

Style and Subjects

Marstrand loved crowds and the stories inside them. His Italian pictures show festivals, taverns and street sellers in Rome and the hill towns of Olevano, Civitella and Subiaco, painted with bright color and plenty of gentle humor. He also drew constantly, jotting down quick, lively sketches of what he saw.

Back home he painted portraits of Copenhagen's middle class, scenes from the comedies of Ludvig Holberg, Swedish peasants from Dalarna, and later grand history paintings such as King Christian IV aboard the Trefoldigheden. Whatever the subject, his figures are full of character and movement.

Famous Works

• A Street Scene in the Dogdays (1832), Statens Museum for Kunst, Copenhagen. Copenhagen townspeople on a hot summer day, an early example of his everyday street scenes.
• October Festival Evening Outside the Walls of Rome (1839), Thorvaldsen Museum, Copenhagen. Romans celebrate the autumn wine festival outside the city.
• A Charlatan Selling Blacking in the Piazza Barberini in Rome (1844), Statens Museum for Kunst, Copenhagen. A street salesman draws a crowd in a Roman square.
• Italian Osteria Scene, Girl Welcoming a Person Entering (1847), Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Copenhagen. A cheerful tavern interior with a young woman greeting a guest.
• Collegium Politicum (1852), Statens Museum for Kunst, Copenhagen. A scene from Holberg's comedy The Political Tinker.
• Church-Goers Arriving by Boat at the Parish Church of Leksand on Siljan Lake, Sweden (1853), Statens Museum for Kunst, Copenhagen. Villagers in local dress row across the lake to Sunday service.
• Portrait of Otto Marstrand's Two Daughters and Their Nanny (1857), Statens Museum for Kunst, Copenhagen. The artist's nieces and their nanny in the Frederiksberg Gardens.

Decorating with Marstrand Prints

The Italian festival and tavern scenes bring warmth and good humor to a dining room or kitchen. Their sunny reds, golds and greens look good with wood, terracotta and linen, and they work well in a Mediterranean-style home.

The Swedish lake scene and the Frederiksberg Gardens portrait suit a calm Scandinavian interior, a living room or a bedroom with pale walls. His small pencil studies and portraits make a good group for a hallway or study, framed simply and hung together.

FAQ

What art movement was Wilhelm Marstrand part of?

Marstrand belongs to the Danish Golden Age, the flowering of Danish painting in the first half of the 19th century. Like many Golden Age painters, he trained under C.W. Eckersberg.

What is Wilhelm Marstrand's most famous painting?

His Italian scenes are the best known, especially October Festival Evening Outside the Walls of Rome (1839) at the Thorvaldsen Museum. Church-Goers Arriving by Boat at Leksand (1853) is another favorite.

Where can I see Marstrand's original paintings?

Most of his major works are in Copenhagen, at the Statens Museum for Kunst (National Gallery of Denmark), the Thorvaldsen Museum and the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek.

How can you recognize a Marstrand painting?

Look for lively groups of people, warm color, small humorous details and a strong sense of story. His Italian scenes are full of festivals and taverns, and his Danish works often show families and characters from Holberg's plays.

Why did Marstrand paint so many scenes from Holberg's comedies?

The plays of Ludvig Holberg gave him exactly what he enjoyed painting: everyday characters, comic situations and crowded rooms. He painted and drew scenes from several of them, including Erasmus Montanus and The Political Tinker.

Related Artists

• Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg — Marstrand's teacher at the Copenhagen Academy
• Christen Købke — fellow Eckersberg pupil of the Danish Golden Age
• Constantin Hansen — Golden Age painter who also worked in Rome in the 1830s
• Peder Severin Krøyer — one of Marstrand's students at the Academy
• Carl Bloch — another of Marstrand's students