“Emilie Menzel Asleep”
This oil on canvas painting by the German realist painter, Adolph Friedrich Erdmann von Menzel, or Adolph Menzel, dates to circa 1848, and is titled “Emilie Menzel Asleep.” This is one of several domestic scenes that Adolph painted of his sister, Emilie (see “Living Room with the Artist’s Sister, Emilie”).
During this time in his life, Menzel was straying away from illustration work, the medium that made him successful, and started creating more standalone pieces of art. He worked on creating large-scale history paintings, in addition to scenes from domestic daily life, such as this one here. Emilie, Adolph’s sister, went on to marry the German royal conductor and composer, Hermann Krigar.
Menzel produced a large number of drawings that were used to illustrate books, making him one of the earliest illustrators in the world. He soon transitioned to painting. As Menzel had no formal training, he created works without regard to art rules of the day, helping to start the German realism art movement. Some art critics see the very earliest beginnings of what would be both the French Impressionist and Expressionist art movements in his work.
“Emilie Menzel Asleep” is currently in the collections of the Kunsthalle Art Museum in Hamburg, Germany.
For more on Adolph Menzel, please visit his short biography here.
You can find more artists to learn about here.
