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Johan Frederik Clemens (29 November 1749 – 5 November 1831) was a
Pomerania Pomerania ( ; ; ; ) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The central and eastern part belongs to the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, West Pomeranian, Pomeranian Voivod ...
n- Danish
printmaker Printmaking is the process of creating artworks by printing, normally on paper, but also on fabric, wood, metal, and other surfaces. "Traditional printmaking" normally covers only the process of creating prints using a hand processed technique ...
in
etching Etching is traditionally the process of using strong acid or mordant to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in intaglio (incised) in the metal. In modern manufacturing, other chemicals may be used on other type ...
.


Early life and education

Clemens was born in Gollnow (now Goleniów) near Stettin (now
Szczecin Szczecin ( , , ; ; ; or ) is the capital city, capital and largest city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Located near the Baltic Sea and the Poland-Germany border, German border, it is a major port, seaport, the la ...
) in
Pomerania Pomerania ( ; ; ; ) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The central and eastern part belongs to the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, West Pomeranian, Pomeranian Voivod ...
, to a poor
Saxon The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian " stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like th ...
weaver, Johan David Clemens, and his wife Anna Francken. The father, along with his son Johan, moved to
Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
when the boy was still quite young. He sought to begin his training at the Royal Danish Academy of Art (''Det Kongelige Danske Kunstakademi'') already in 1760 at the age of 11. He enrolled for training, but was rejected by Drawing Master Hans Clio as being too young and little. Sculptor Simon Carl Stanley took an interest in the child, and with his help Johan came into the School of Drawing in 1761. He trained both as a decorative painter, and as a craftsman painter. In 1764 at the age of 15 Clemens was in training under an alcoholic painting master, where he was put to work with simple decorations work. When he became a painting apprentice he came into training at Johan Edvard Mandelberg's studio. Mandelberg used many talented apprentices to carry out his numerous projects. It was here that Clemens came to know Nikolaj Abraham Abildgaard, Frederik Ludvig Bradt, Johannes Samuel Lymann and other talented young talents from the Art Academy, some of whom would achieve great fame and position in the years to come. In 1765 he had already won both the Academy's small and large silver medallions.
Jacques Saly Jacques François Joseph Saly, also known as Jacques Saly (20 June 1717 – 4 May 1776), French-born sculptor who worked in France, Italy and Malta. He is commonly associated with his time in Denmark he served as Director of the Royal Danis ...
, the Academy's Director, advised the boy to become a sculptor, but he was interested in becoming a copperplate etcher. He was recommended to train under Johan Martin Preisler, but Preisler showed no interest in him until Clemens made a print based on an etching by Jean Daullé. Impressed by this work, Preisler became Clemens' devoted friend and protector. Clemens trained under Preisler between ca. 1769–1770. He soon won another influential protector, theatrical painter Peter Cramer, who recommended him to sculptor Johannes Wiedewelt. Clemens made etchings based on Wiedewelt's illustrations for a deluxe edition of
Ludvig Holberg Ludvig Holberg, Baron of Holberg (3 December 1684 – 28 January 1754) was a writer, essayist, philosopher, historian and playwright born in Bergen, Norway, during the time of the Denmark–Norway, Dano–Norwegian dual monarchy. He was infl ...
's "Peder Paars" in 1772, giving the youngster a decent income in which to support himself and his father. Wiedewelt became his lifelong friend and patron, and additional book assignments followed closely.


Travel to Paris

With Wiedewelt's help Clemens received a four-year travel stipend and was able to leave Copenhagen in 1774. We went directly to
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
, where he was influenced by the technique and style of Charles-Nicolas Cochin. Clemens was productive and etched many portraits during his stay in Paris. He also became engaged to Marie Jeanne Crevoisier while there. He developed such a glowing reputation as an artist in Paris that the Academy soon offered to take him on as a member, provided he produced a new, quality work for his application piece. At the same time his travel stipend was running out. He requested permission to stay, and was denied it because "certain important people" wanted Clemens to return to Copenhagen to etch plates for a royal project. Clemens ignored this order and remained, at least until he received a formal order to return. His friends in Copenhagen, however, managed to get him permission for a stopover in Switzerland on his travel home. Clemens left Paris in 1777 along with Jens Juel and Simon Malgo, and traveled to
Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...
, where he made
vignette Vignette may refer to: * Vignette (entertainment), a sketch in a sketch comedy * Vignette (graphic design), decorative designs in books (originally in the form of leaves and vines) to separate sections or chapters * Vignette (literature), short, i ...
s for Charles Bonnet's "''Oeuvres d'histoire naturelle et de philosophie ''" and an etching based on Jens Juel's
portrait A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face is always predominant. In arts, a portrait may be represented as half body and even full body. If the subject in full body better r ...
of Bonnet. The portrait drew a lot of attention to Clemens' skills, and led to a lifelong collaboration between the two artists.


Return to Copenhagen

He returned to Copenhagen in autumn 1778 where his elderly father was sick and decrepit. In 1779 he was named royal engraver, with the helpful support of Wiedewelt, and received an annual wage by which he could support a family. Along with Juel, who was named to royal painter for the court the following year, he was kept busy making
portrait A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face is always predominant. In arts, a portrait may be represented as half body and even full body. If the subject in full body better r ...
s for the royal family and nobility over the next ten years. He returned to Paris to marry fiancée, Marie Jeanne Crevoisier, on 27 August 1781. They moved together back to Copenhagen. He taught his new wife, already artistically inclined, the art of copperplate etching, and she became quite proficient at it. Marie Jeanne quickly fell into the Danish artistic milieu. Clemens' father died in 1782. That same year Marie Jeanne received an invitation of her own to join the Art Academy as
pastel A pastel () is an art medium that consists of powdered pigment and a binder (material), binder. It can exist in a variety of forms, including a stick, a square, a pebble, and a pan of color, among other forms. The pigments used in pastels are ...
painter. She was one of the first women to receive the honor. She, however, never delivered her assigned submission work to the Academy, and therefore never fulfilled the conditions for membership. Clemens achieved great notice during this period of time for etchings he created for two book assignments: a collection of Johannes Ewald's works based on drawings of Abildgaard, begun in 1780, and another based on illustrations by his friend and patron, Wiedewelt in 1783. Clemens' 1780 illustration for the first volume of Ewald's work— for the dramatic piece "Adam and Eve"— was considered indecent, and led to a break in their collaboration for several years. The two continued their collaboration with "Socrates" (1786) and "''Lykkens Tempel''" ("The Temple of Happiness"). Clemens occupied a central position in that time's artistic life and spirit, and was an avid participant in the Enlightenment's scientific and philosophical discussions. During the 1780s he collaborated with Abildgaard on a series of social, religious and political satires and critiques. Like Juel and Abildgaard he had close connections to contemporary political circles, and he and his wife were particularly close to Chamberlain and Court Marshal Johan Bülow. Clemens was first accepted as member of the Academy in 1786 with the submission of etchings of "''Kronprins Frederik''" ("Crown Prince Frederik") and "Louise Augusta". With his enormous creative talent Clemens' reputation in Denmark grew, and he was in good company with his contemporaries Nikolaj Abraham Abildgaard, Johan Martin Preisler, Johan Edvard Mandelberg, Johannes Wiedewelt and Jens Juel.


Assignments in Berlin and London

In 1787 Clemens was invited to
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
to make an etching based on a drawing by Englishman E.F. Cunningham, "Frederick the Great Riding Home After Manoeuvres at Potsdam". He received royal approval and traveled there the next year. He lived in Berlin for four years under less than agreeable circumstances, as Cunningham was difficult to work with. He received membership in the Academy in Berlin in 1788, and his works were exhibited at the Berlin Academy that same year. In 1789 his engravings based on Abildgaards originals appeared in another Ludwig Holberg work "''Niels Klim''". His wife succumbed to tuberculosis in 1791 in Berlin, leaving behind a nine-year-old son. Two other children had died young. When the Berlin assignment was completed Clemens traveled in 1792 with royal permission to
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
to work on a new etching based on
John Trumbull John Trumbull (June 6, 1756 – November 10, 1843) was an American painter and military officer best known for his historical paintings of the American Revolutionary War, of which he was a veteran. He has been called the "Painter of the Revolut ...
's '' The Death of General Montgomery in the Attack on Quebec, December 31, 1775''. This work brought him further commissions for prints based on several other paintings by Trumbull and
Benjamin West Benjamin West (October 10, 1738 – March 11, 1820) was a British-American artist who painted famous historical scenes such as ''The Death of Nelson (West painting), The Death of Nelson'', ''The Death of General Wolfe'', the ''Treaty of Paris ( ...
. He exhibited at the Charlottenborg Salon in Copenhagen for the first time in 1794, and again in 1815. In London he married Ann Rees in 1795. File:niels klim illustration 1789.jpg, Illustration from the luxurious 1789 edition of
Ludvig Holberg Ludvig Holberg, Baron of Holberg (3 December 1684 – 28 January 1754) was a writer, essayist, philosopher, historian and playwright born in Bergen, Norway, during the time of the Denmark–Norway, Dano–Norwegian dual monarchy. He was infl ...
s ''Niels Klims underjordiske Rejse''. Etching by Clemens after drawing by Nicolai Abraham Abildgaard. File:Johan Frederik Clemens - The Death of General Montgomery, In the Attack of Quebec, December 1775 - Google Art Project.jpg, ''The Death of General Montgomery, In the Attack of Quebec, December 1775''. Etching by Clemens after painting by
John Trumbull John Trumbull (June 6, 1756 – November 10, 1843) was an American painter and military officer best known for his historical paintings of the American Revolutionary War, of which he was a veteran. He has been called the "Painter of the Revolut ...
.


His final years in Copenhagen

He returned to Denmark in 1795. He received an apartment at the Academy in 1797, and served as the Academy's treasurer several times in the years to come. His engraving "''Slaget på Reden''" (The Battle of Copenhagen) was created in 1801, and was based on a drawing by Christian August Lorentzen. It pictured the battle led by Admiral
Horatio Nelson Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronte ( – 21 October 1805) was a Royal Navy officer whose leadership, grasp of strategy and unconventional tactics brought about a number of decisive British naval victories during the French ...
, part of the English attack on Copenhagen ( Battle of Copenhagen (1801)) during the
Napoleonic wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...
, which reached its high point on 2 April 1801. This engraving was very popular in its day and was a feature in many homes as a show of patriotism. It has also come to stand as the best and most reliable illustration of this battle today. He was named professor in copperplate etching at the Academy in 1813 after being several times passed over, and finally extraordinary professor in the School of Model Painting in 1818 at the age of 70. His second wife died in 1824. He exhibited at Charlottenborg several times during the 1820s. He died on 5 November 1831, at the age of 81.


The fruits of a long life

He won himself many loyal supporters and good friends early on, among them two of the most important Danish artists of his time, Jens Juel and Nicolai Abraham Abildgaard, who were vital for him as an aspiring young engraver. Many of Clemens' portraits are based on Juel's originals. He survived many of his contemporary artistic friends, some by several decades, and was able to establish himself with new generations of artists such as Lorentzen and Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg. He made etchings based on several of their works. In his later years he experimented with
lithography Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the miscibility, immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by ...
, a printing technique which competed successfully against copperplate etching in the years to come. He was skillful, persistent and ambitious, and used his social contacts to reach his goals. His total output comes to around 400 prints.


See also

* Carl Edvard Sonne


References


KID Kunst Index Danmark ("Art Index Denmark")

Danish Biographical Encyclopedia ("''Dansk biografisk Leksikion''")

The Battle of Copenhagen (Rheden) 2 April 1801
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clemens, Johan Frederik 1749 births 1831 deaths 18th-century Danish engravers 19th-century Danish engravers People from Goleniów People from the Province of Pomerania 18th-century Danish printmakers 19th-century Danish printmakers 18th-century Danish artists Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts alumni