Heinrich Vianden, better known as Henry Vianden (July 9, 1814 – February 5, 1899), was a

German American German Americans (german: Deutschamerikaner, ) are Americans who have full or partial German ancestry. With an estimated size of approximately 43 million in 2019, German Americans are the largest of the self-reported ancestry groups by the Unite ...

lithographer and engraver. He was nicked "The Bear" by his friends and is often considered as "father of Wisconsin art".''Lifetime Achievement Awards honor first group of visual artists: Henry Vianden (1814-1899)''
at ''www.portalwisconsin.org''.

Biography

Vianden was born in Poppelsdorf, today a quarter of Bonn. He was the only child of the ceramic painter ''Wilhelm Joseph Vianden'' (1788–1818) and his wife ''Anna Maria'', née ''Weyh'' (1788–1866). When he was five years old, his father died. At the age of 14, Vianden started a goldsmith training and did his studies of arts at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Munich from 1838 to 1841. At first he exhibited in Cologne in 1844. Also in 1844, he finished his studies in

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

for one and a half year, where he also worked with

Frans-Andries Durlet Frans-Andries aka François André or Franciscus Andreas Durlet, (11 July 1816 – 2 March 1867) was a Belgian architect, sculptor and printmaker. Durlet was born and died in Antwerp. He taught at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp and was ...

. In 1845 he returned to Germany, where he lived at ''Große Brinkgasse 11'' in Cologne. In November 1848 he married ''Magdalena Krüppel'' (b. 1811), daughter of a physician from Zülpich. They had four children, which all died in their childhood. Together with Magdalena he left Germany in May 1849 and came to New York City on July 4 of the same year. After a short stay, they moved to Wisconsin, where they stood near

Burlington Burlington may refer to: Places Canada Geography * Burlington, Newfoundland and Labrador * Burlington, Nova Scotia * Burlington, Ontario, the most populous city with the name "Burlington" * Burlington, Prince Edward Island * Burlington Bay, no ...

for a while, before they settled down in Milwaukee, and applied for US citizenship. His first exhibition in Milwaukee was in December 1849. In May 1950 they moved to a suburb, now part of Milwaukee, where he taught in his open air school near Root Creek. He also taught in his studio at ''111 Mason Street'', Milwaukee, and at

Peter Engelmann Peter Engelmann (January 24, 1823May 17, 1874) was a German American immigrant, educationist, writer, and Wisconsin pioneer. He was the founder of the collection which became the Milwaukee Public Museum, and was also founder of the influential "G ...

's ''German-English Academy'', today

University School of Milwaukee The University School of Milwaukee (often abbreviated to USM) is an independent pre-kindergarten through secondary preparatory school in River Hills and Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It was founded as the result of the merger of three schools, Milwauk ...

, as well as at the ''German, French, and English Academy'' of Mathilde Franziska Anneke.

Carl von Marr Carl von Marr (February 14, 1858 – July 10, 1936) was an American-born German painter whose work encompassed religious and mythological subjects, genre, and portraits. He was also a professor of art in Munich. Biography He was born in Mi ...

, Robert Koehler, Frank Enders,

Robert Schade Robert Schade (1861 – 1912) was an American painter. Biography Schade was son of the Pomeranian immigrants ''August'' and ''Augusta Schade'', who settled down in Milwaukee in 1863. At the age of 15 he started his studies of art at Milwaukee ...

and

Susan Stuart Frackelton Susan Stuart Goodrich Frackelton (1848–1932) was an American painter, specializing in painting ceramics. She was a leader in the Arts and Crafts movement in the United States and author of ''Tried by Fire'',Susan S. Frackelton''Tried By Fi ...

were students of him. On June 5, 1860, his wife Magdalena abandoned him and returned to Germany. He applied for divorce on November 1861 and was divorced on February 15, 1862. In 1867 he remarried the German Fredericka Wollenzien (1837–1897). They had no children. At the age of 85 he died near Milwaukee due to a pleurisy. He sold part of his land to the Forest Home Cemetery in his lifetime, and is buried there. His house was demolished in 1922.Peter C. Merrill
''Henry Vianden: Pioneer Artist in Milwaukee''
/ref>

References

External links

*
1869 Map of Milwaukee
Bottom sheet, upper left quadrant, upper right corner {{DEFAULTSORT:Vianden, Henry 19th-century American painters American male painters 19th-century German painters 19th-century American male artists German male painters American engravers German engravers German emigrants to the United States 19th-century lithographers American lithographers German lithographers 19th-century German artists Landscape artists Royal Academy of Fine Arts (Antwerp) alumni Academy of Fine Arts, Munich alumni 1814 births 1899 deaths