73 - Friedrich Wasmann (1805 Hamburg – Merano 1886), Portrait of Josepha von Zallinger-Stillendorf, née von Zamboni.

Friedrich Wasmann (1805 Hamburg – Merano 1886), Portrait of Josepha von Zallinger-Stillendorf, née von Zamboni. Oil on wood. 1884. Approx. 33 x 25 cm. Signed and dated lower right. This extraordinary portrait of Josepha von Zallinger-Stillendorf, née von Zamboni, is reminiscent in its composition of Leonardo da Vinci’s famous Mona Lisa: the calm gaze directed at the viewer, the slightly turned posture, and the landscape opening up behind the subject immediately evoke that famous composition. However, Leonardo’s Tuscan landscape is replaced here by the Alpine scenery of South Tyrol—a reference to the origins of Josepha, who was born in Mattarello, Trentino, in 1825, and her connection to the long-established von Zallinger family of Bolzano. For in the distance, one can make out the Zallinger Chapel on the Seiser Alm, which was donated by her husband, the lawyer and landowner Karl von Zallinger-Stillendorf. Not only this specific reference to the Zallinger-Stillendorf family’s estates and social standing, but also Josepha’s elegant attire contribute significantly to the portrait’s prestigious character. Dressed in an elegant sky-blue Biedermeier gown and wearing a gold necklace, she appears as a lady of high social standing. In contrast to Josepha’s contemporary appearance, the open arched architecture and the landscape lend the painting an air of the Italian Renaissance—an impression that takes on special significance due to Wasmann’s own biography. The artist, who was originally from Hamburg, spent several years in Rome, where he was in close contact with the Nazarenes, a group of artists strongly influenced by the Italian Renaissance. After his return to South Tyrol, he became a sought-after portraitist and painted his first portrait of Josepha von Zallinger-Stillendorf as early as 1841; this second portrait was created in 1848. It thus combines contemporary Biedermeier portraiture with a visual style inspired by the Italian Renaissance. Bibliography: Nathan, Peter, Friedrich Wasmann, His Life and Work, Munich 1954, no. 92, ill. 101; Bolzano Portraits—from 1800 to the Present, exhibition catalog, Rizzolli House, Bolzano, 1989, cover image, no. 32. Exhibition: A Morning Dream: Friedrich Wasmann and Merano, South Tyrol Museum at Tyrol Castle, July 1 – November 30, 2006, no. 77. Provenance: Private collection, South Tyrol. Private collection, Southern Germany. Taxation: subject to margin scheme (VAT: Margin Scheme).