Carl Edvard Sonne (1 December 1804 – 3 January 1878) was a Danish printmaker. His work consisted exclusively of reproductions of works by other artists, especially

genre paintings Genre painting (or petit genre) is the painting of genre art, which depicts aspects of everyday life by portraying ordinary people engaged in common activities. One common definition of a genre scene is that it shows figures to whom no identity c ...

, which reached a large audience through

Kunstforeningen Kunstforeningen ( English The Art Society), now officially called Gammel Strand after its address, is an exhibition space and non-profit membership organization located at Gammel Strand in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was founded in 1825 to promote a ...

. He was the brother of painter Jørgen Sonne.

Life

Early life and education

Sonne was born on 1 December 1804 in

Birkerød Birkerød () is a town in Rudersdal Municipality in the northern outskirts of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is surrounded by several lakes and small woodlands. Birkerød station is located on the Nordbanen, Hillerød radial of the S-train suburban networ ...

, the son of printmaker Jeppe Jørgen Sonne (1771–1833) and Else Cathrine Zimmer (1771–1851). He trained as a printmaker under his father and at the

Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts () has provided education in the arts for more than 250 years, playing its part in the development of the art of Denmark. History The Royal Danish Academy of Portraiture, Sculpture, and Architecture in Cope ...

in 1819–28. He was also trained in drawing privately under J. L. Lund. In 1826 and 1828 he published 18 reproductions of works by mostly contemporary artists such as

Herman Wilhelm Bissen Herman Wilhelm Bissen (13 October 1798 – 10 March 1868) was a Danish sculptor. Bissen created a number of public works, working in plaster, marble and bronze. The National Gallery of Denmark owns a collection of over two hundred of his ...

Ditlev Blunck Ditlev Conrad Blunck (22 June 1798 – 7 January 1853) was a Danish-German painter associated with the Danish Golden Age during the first half of the 19th century. Biography Blunck was born in 1798 in Münsterdorf in Holstein, at that time ...

Albert Küchler Albert Küchler, O.F.M. (; 2 May 1803 – 16 February 1886), also known as Peter of Copenhagen, was a Danish painter associated with the Danish Golden Age. He mainly painted genre works and portraits. He was highly esteemed by his contempo ...

Martinus Rørbye Martinus Christian Wesseltoft Rørbye (; 17 May 1803 – 29 August 1848) was a Danish painter, known both for genre works and landscapes. He was a central figure of the Golden Age of Danish painting during the first half of the 19th century. T ...

and others.

Italy, 1828–1847

In 1828, prompted by J. F. Clemens' high age and poor health, Sonne travelled to

Parma Parma (; ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, Giuseppe Verdi, music, art, prosciutto (ham), Parmesan, cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,986 inhabitants as of 2025, ...

to continue his training under

Paolo Toschi Paolo Toschi (1788 – 30 July 1854) was an Italian draughtsman and engraver. He was born in Parma. Biography He trained in Paris under Charles Clément Bervic, and first made a reputation by a fine etching of ''Henry IV'', after Gérard. In 18 ...

. He ended up spending the next 20 years in Italy, working at leading graphic workshops in both Parma and

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

Career in Denmark

On his return to Copenhagen in 1847, Sonne was made an associated member of the art academy but was not accepted as a real member until 1858. He exhibited his works at Charlottenborg in 1826–76. He died unmarried on 3 January 1878 in Copenhagen and is buried in the city's Garrison Cemetery.

Works

39 of Sonne's works are included in the Royal Danish Print Collection.

Depictions

Sonne is portrayed in a genre painting by

from 1826. He is seen in a boat on his brother Jørgen Sonne's monumental frieze of

Bertel Thorvaldsen Albert Bertel Thorvaldsen (; sometimes given as Thorwaldsen; 19 November 1770 – 24 March 1844) was a Danes, Danish-Icelanders, Icelandic Sculpture, sculptor and medallist, medalist of international fame, who spent most of his life (1797–183 ...

's homecoming on the façade of

Thorvaldsens Museum The Thorvaldsen Museum is a single-artist museum in Copenhagen, Denmark, dedicated to the art of Danish and Icelandic Neoclassical sculptor Bertel Thorvaldsen (1770–1844), who lived and worked in Rome for most of his life (1796–1838). The ...

in spite of the fact that he still lived in Italy when Thorvaldsen returned to Copenhagen in 1843. The sculptor Herman Wilhelm Bissen created a portrait bust of him in 1960 ( Danish National Gallery.

References

External links

Carl Esward Sonne
at

Kunstindeks Danmark ''Weilbachs Kunstnerleksikon'' (English: ''Weilbach's Biographical Dictionary of Artists'') is a Danish biographical dictionary of artists and architects. The current edition, which is also freely accessible online, contains the biographies of some ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sonne, Carl Edvard 19th-century Danish printmakers People from Rudersdal Municipality Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts alumni 1804 births 1878 deaths