(Dronrijp, 8.1.1836-Wiesbaden, 25.6.1912)
Sir Lawrence Alma Tadema is considered one of the most successful and popular artists who worked during the 19th and at the turn of the 20th century. He is a Dutchman by birth, but since 1870 he has moved to London. His fruitful artistic career began there. Lawrence cultivated his talent for painting from an early age. In 1952, he enrolled at the Academy of Arts in Antwerp. It was then that he developed a special attitude towards historical painting, which in a realistic expression accompanied him throughout his creative career. At first, he focused on artistic material from the Merovingian period. During his studies, the young artist went to the study library of the archeology department several times, as he was fascinated by the heritage preserved from the time of ancient civilizations. There he redrew ancient buildings and objects, training himself in detail and gaining a good knowledge of past styles. In London, he visited the collection of the British Museum several times, where he got to know Egyptian motifs more closely.
He was so inspired by monumental objects from the ancient past that he created a series of images featuring fatal Egyptian girls. A brief fascination with the Egyptian past was followed by an interest in the ancient Romans. In addition, she sponsored the artist's wedding trip to Italy, where he and his wife visited Pompeii and Herculaneum. At that time, excavations took place in the cities and the artist was able to get acquainted with their culture with his own eyes. He sketched and redrew the excavated a lot. Lawrence Alma Tadema was not only an exceptional artist, but he knew how to obtain the highest possible proceeds for his works. He was assisted in this by Ernest Gambert, who was a leading art dealer during the Victorian era. Thus, the artist was not only presented in Europe, but his production also spread among collectors in America, where he achieved a great international reputation during his lifetime. In his Roman-inspired histories, the Pompeian red color really shines, emphasizing the sun-drenched artistic field.
At the beginning of the 60s, his expression moved towards pastel tones, and he finished it in pink shades, which brought a lighter atmosphere to the paintings. From the very beginning of his work, he strove to treat the objects in as much detail as possible. This most likely originates from the local tradition, since in northern painting ever since the arrival of van Eyck, the painting of all objects in the most detailed manner has dominated. Homage to the great painter can also be seen in the affinity for painting materials, e.g. velvet, fur and in light reflections, which he explored throughout his life. Tadema never painted images. He achieved the shimmering effect by gradually toning the white base. When painting, he used photography, which served as an important visual aid in his studio. His images are full of joy for life and take us away from everyday troubles, to the carefree past of our ancestors. He marked all the oil paintings with Roman numerals, which was an attempt to prevent forgery and enable an overview of the artistic creation. He was considered a very eccentric personality. He often dressed extravagantly and went to notorious parties. In 1899, he received a noble title from the royal family. His great reputation in the city is also indicated by the place of his burial in the Cathedral of St. Paul's in London, where the giants of England's past were placed.
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Sir Lawrence Alma Tadema velja za enega najuspešnejših in najbolj priljubljenih umetnikov, ki so ustvarjali tekom 19. in na prelomu 20. stoletja. Po rodu je bi Nizozemec, vse od leta 1870 pa se je preselil v London. Tam se je pričela njegova plodovita umetnostna kariera. Slikarski talent je Lawrence gojil že od malih nog. Leta 1952 se je vpisal na umetnostno akademijo v Antwerpnu. Tedaj je razvil poseben odnos do historičnega slikarstva, ki ga je v realističnem izrazu spremljalo skozi celotno ustvarjalno kariero. Sprva se je osredotočil na likovno snov iz merovinškega časa. Med študijem se je mladi umetnik večkrat odpravil v študijsko knjižnico oddelka za arheologijo, saj se je že zgodaj navdušil nad zapuščino, ki se je ohranila iz časa starih civilizacij. Tam je prerisoval antične zgradbe in predmete, s čimer se je izuril v nadrobnostih in pridobil dobro znanje o preteklih slogih. V Londonu je večkrat zašel v zbirko Britanskega muzeja, kjer se je od bližje spoznaval z egipčansko motiviko.
Monumentalni predmeti iz starodavne preteklosti so ga tako navdihnili, da je izdelal serijo podob v katerih nastopajo fatalna Egipčanska dekleta. Kratkemu navdušenju nad egipčansko preteklostjo je sledilo zanimanje za antične Rimljane. K temu je botrovala umetnikovo poročno potovanje v Italijo, kjer sta skupaj z ženo obiskala Pompeje in Herkulaneum. Tedaj so v mestih potekala izkopavanja in se je lahko umetnik na lastne oči seznanil z njihovo kulturo. Veliko je skiciral in prerisoval izkopane. Lawrence Alma Tadema pa ni bil zgolj izjemen umetnik ampak je za svoja dela znal pridobiti kar najvišji iztržek. Pri tem mu je pomagal Ernest Gambert, ki je bil tekom viktorijanske dobe vodilni trgovec z umetninami. Tako se umetnik ni predstavil zgolj v Evropi ampak se je njegova produkcija razširila tudi med zbiratelje v Ameriki, kjer je še za čas življenja dosegel velik mednarodni ugled. V njegovih rimsko navdahnjenih historijah kar žari pompejansko rdeča barva, ki poudari s soncem obsijano likovno polje.
V začetku 60ih let se je njegov izraz pomaknil v smeri proti pastelnim tonom, zaključil pa ga je v rožnatih odtenkih, ki so v slike ponesli lahkotnejše vzdušje. Že na samem začetku ustvarjanja je stremel k čim bolj podrobni obravnavi predmetov. To najverjetneje izvira iz domače tradicije, saj je v severnem slikarstvu vse od prihoda van Eycka zavladalo slikanje vseh objektov na čim bolj detajlen način. Hommage velikemu slikarju je viden tudi v afiniteti do slikanja materialov npr. žameta, krzna in v svetlobnih odbleskih, ki jih je ta raziskoval skozi vse življenje. Tadema nikdar ni lakiral podob. Svetlikajoč se učinek je dosegel s tem, ko je postopno toniral belo podlago. Pri slikanju se je posluževal fotografije, ki mu je v ateljeju služila kot pomemben vizualni pripomoček. Njegove podobe so polne veselja do življenja in nas popeljejo stran od vsakdanjih tegob, v brezskrbno preteklost naših prednikov. Vse oljne slike je označil z rimskimi številkami s čimer je poskušal preprečiti ponarejanje in omogočiti pregled nad likovnim ustvarjanjem. Veljal je za zelo ekscentrično osebnost. Večkrat se je oblačil ekstravagantno in hodil na razvpite zabave. Leta 1899 je od kraljeve družine prejel plemiški naziv. Na njegov velik ugled v mestu kaže tudi mesto pokopa v katedralo Sv. Pavla v Londonu, kamor so postavilii velikaše iz angleške preteklosti.
Besedilo je za galerijo Porta Alpina pripravila Pia Župevec, dipl. um. zgod.
The text was prepared for the Porta Alpina gallery by Pia Župevec, B.Sc. art history
SOURCES/VIRI:
Elizabeth PRETTEJOHN, At Home in London, 1870-1885, Lawrence Alma –Tadema (Leeuwarden, Fries Museum, edd. Elisabeth Prettejohn, Peter Trippi), Leeuwarden 2017, pp. 56-74.
Eugenia QUERCI, Lawrence Alma-Tadema, Firenze 2007 (Art e dossier).
France STELE, s. v. Alma Tadema, Sir Lawrence, Enciklopedija Likovnih Umjetnosti, 1, Zagreb 1959, p. 57.
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