Carl Borromäus Andreas Ruthart, also known as Carl Ruther and Karl Ruthard; in Italian as Carlo Borromeo Rutardo (1630, Danzig - c. 1703,

L'Aquila L'Aquila ( ; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' in central Italy. It is the capital city of the Province of L'Aquila and the Abruzzo region in Italy. , it has a population of 69,902. Laid out within medieval walls on a hill in the wide valley of the A ...

) was a German painter who spent most of his career in Italy. During the last years of his life, he was referred to as Frà Andrea. He considered himself to be a follower of

Peter Paul Rubens Sir Peter Paul Rubens ( ; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish painting, Flemish artist and diplomat. He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque painting, Flemish Baroque tradition. Rubens' highly charged comp ...

Biography

Around 1650, he was an apprentice of

Daniel Schultz Jerzy (Georg) Daniel Schultz known also as Daniel Schultz the Younger ( – 1683) was a prominent painter of the Baroque era, born and active in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. He painted many Polish and Lithuanian nobles, members of th ...

. From 1663 to 1664, he was a Guild Master in

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

. In the late 1660s, he passed through

Regensburg Regensburg (historically known in English as Ratisbon) is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the rivers Danube, Naab and Regen (river), Regen, Danube's northernmost point. It is the capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the ...

on his way to Vienna, where he stayed for two years. Initially, he was an

animal painter An animal painter is an artist who specialises in (or is known for their skill in) the portrayal of animals. The ''OED'' dates the first express use of the term "animal painter" to the mid-18th century: by English physician, naturalist and writ ...

and specialized in depicting predators; especially the large cats, with harsh background scenes. Such paintings were very popular in Germany at the time. He also collaborated with

Wilhelm Schubert van Ehrenberg Wilhelm Schubert van Ehrenberg or Willem Schubart van Ehrenberg (also: Wilhem Schubert von Ehrenberg or Wilhem Schubert van Ehrenberg (Antwerp, 1630 or 1637– Antwerp, c. 1676) was a Flemish painter mainly active in Antwerp who specialized in a ...

, adding animals to his landscapes.Biographical notes
@ the Getty Museum. After moving to Italy, around 1672, he turned to painting sacred subjects, beginning with decorations for the choir at the Church of Sant'Eusebio in Rome. He eventually settled in L'Aquila, impressed by the rite of the Celestinian Forgiveness, which was instituted by Pope

Celestine V Celestine is a given name and a surname. People Given name * Pope Celestine I (died 432) * Pope Celestine II (died 1144) * Pope Celestine III (c. 1106–1198) * Pope Celestine IV (died 1241) * Pope Celestine V (1215–1296) * Antipop ...

in the 13th century. So much so, that he became a

Celestine Celestine is a given name and a surname. People Given name * Pope Celestine I (died 432) * Pope Celestine II (died 1144) * Pope Celestine III (c. 1106–1198) * Pope Celestine IV (died 1241) * Pope Celestine V (1215–1296) * Antipope Cel ...

monk and took the name Frà Andrea. He would spend the rest of his life in the convent at the Basilica of

Santa Maria di Collemaggio Santa Maria di Collemaggio is a large medieval church in L'Aquila, central Italy. It was the site of the original Jubilee (Christian), Papal Jubilee, a penitential observation devised by Pope Celestine V, who is buried there. The church, which the ...

. While there, he painted four large canvases depicting the life of Pope Celestine, all of which, in keeping with his earlier specialty, included animals. This time however, they are shown being tamed. He did a similar series on Saint

Bernardino of Siena Bernardino of Siena, Order of Friars Minor, OFM (Bernardine or Bernadine; 8 September 138020 May 1444), was an Catholic Church in Italy, Italian Catholic priest and Franciscan missionary preacher in Italy. He was a systematizer of Scholasticism, ...

which is preserved at the

Museo Nazionale d'Abruzzo The Museo Nazionale d'Abruzzo is hosted in the Forte Spagnolo of L'Aquila. The Museum is on three floors: on the ground floor, there is the giant skeleton of an Archidiskon meridionalis (improperly called mammoth, a prehistoric "elephant") found ...

. He also did four portrait paintings for the Palazzo del Municipio in

Chieti Chieti (, ; , , ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Southern Italy, east of Rome. It is the capital of the province of Chieti, in the Abruzzo, Abruzzo region. In Italian, the adjectival form is ''teatino'' and inhabitants of Chieti ar ...

depicting Pope Celestine, Braccio da Montone,

Saint Benedict Benedict of Nursia (; ; 2 March 480 – 21 March 547), often known as Saint Benedict, was a Great Church, Christian monk. He is famed in the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Lutheran Churches, the Anglican Communion, and Old ...

and

Charles of Anjou Charles I (early 1226/12277 January 1285), commonly called Charles of Anjou or Charles d'Anjou, was King of Sicily from 1266 to 1285. He was a member of the royal Capetian dynasty and the founder of the House of Anjou-Sicily. Between 1246 a ...

. A painting by Ehrenburg, ''Ulysses in Circe's Palace'', which includes animals by Ruthart, is at the

Getty Center The Getty Center, in Los Angeles, California, United States, is a campus of the Getty Museum and other programs of the Getty Trust. The $1.3 billion center opened to the public on December 16, 1997, and is well known for its architecture, garde ...

in Los Angeles.

References

External links

More works by Ruthart
@ ArtNet {{DEFAULTSORT:Ruthart, Carl 1630 births 1700s deaths 17th-century German painters German emigrants to Italy German painters of animals Cat artists Artists from Gdańsk

Biography

References

Further reading

External links