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Sierra Nevada in California |
Albert Bierstadt was born in Solingen, Germany in 1830. His
family moved to Massechusetts, when Albert was two year old. He returned
to Dusseldorf in Germany to study art between 1853 and 1857. His first
painting was purchased by the Boston Arthenaeum and a successful future
was sealed.
He was one of the Hudson River School participants -
an informal group of like-minded painters who were challenged by the
great landscapes of America. He loved mountains and visited the White
Mountains often. Their paintings were detailed, romantic pieces with
great attention to the light. He traveled west to capture the open
spaces a number of times in sketches and drawings, returning to New York
to complete his paintings. In 1863, he traveled west with author Fitz
Hugh Ludlow, whose wife he would later marry. He loved publicity and was
carried away by the uncritical enthusiasm of the general public rather
than heeding the more carefully considered criticism of those who were
better informed.
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Yosemite Falls |
He sold his paintings easily for reasonably large
sums, but the art critics were harsh on his methods and selection of
subjects. I had once get a great custom painting from pic2painting , in Albert's style, quite beautiful.They were also critical of his ego and overuse of some
techniques, but people just kept on buying his works. He had become
internationally renowned for his enormous paintings of the American
west, and the public and the institutions kept paying record prices
(some over $35,000) for his works. He was a prolific artist, and it is
estimated that he sold over 400 paintings. His popularity and wealth
grew, and he built an amazing mansion until the public simply did not
want to buy any more of the detailed landscapes and he declared himself
bankrupt in 1895. He was the central figure in the Rocky Mountain School
of Painting.
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Deer at Sunse |
During his life Albert bierstadt received man honors from
Germany, America, Austria and France and he became a member of the
National academy of Design in New York.
His paintings are popular and can be found in galleries particularly in America.
Albert died in 1902.
The possibility of obtaining any of the great artworks by this
artist is quite small, although from time to time they become available,
but usually one needs to bid against international galleries for the
artwork. Prints and cards have been produced by many suppliers of these
works and other masters. For more information on the old masters and
painters of the 18th century, go to paintingiant art
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