Johann Baptist von Lampi the Elder (, ; 31 December 1751 – 11 February 1830) was an Austrian-Italian historical and portrait painter. He settled in the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

after the third and final partition of Poland, enticed by an extremely generous offer from Tsar

Paul I of Russia Paul I (; – ) was Emperor of Russia from 1796 until his assassination in 1801. Paul remained overshadowed by his mother, Catherine the Great, for most of his life. He adopted the Pauline Laws, laws of succession to the Russian throne—rules ...

Life

Johann Baptist Lampi was born at Romeno in the

County of Tyrol The (Princely) County of Tyrol was an Imperial State, estate of the Holy Roman Empire established about 1140. After 1253, it was ruled by the House of Gorizia and from 1363 by the House of Habsburg. In 1804, the County of Tyrol, unified with th ...

to Matteo, or Matthias, Lampi (1698-1780), a decorative painter. Frescoes by his father may be found in many elegant buildings there. He studied art under his father in

Verona Verona ( ; ; or ) is a city on the Adige, River Adige in Veneto, Italy, with 255,131 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region, and is the largest city Comune, municipality in the region and in Northeast Italy, nor ...

and later in

Salzburg Salzburg is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020 its population was 156,852. The city lies on the Salzach, Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Austrian Alps, Alps moun ...

. In 1773 he went to

Trento Trento ( or ; Ladin language, Ladin and ; ; ; ; ; ), also known in English as Trent, is a city on the Adige, Adige River in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol in Italy. It is the capital of the Trentino, autonomous province of Trento. In the 16th ...

, where he learned to become a portraitist in canvases and miniatures. He travelled to

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; ) is the capital of Tyrol (federal state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the Wipptal, Wipp Valley, which provides access to the ...

, then to

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

, where the Emperor Joseph II appointed him a professor at the Vienna Academy in 1786. That same year, he was invited to

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

by the court of King

Stanisław II Augustus Stanislav and variants may refer to: People *Stanislav (given name), a Slavic given name with many spelling variations (Stanislaus, Stanislas, Stanisław, etc.) Places * Stanislav, Kherson Oblast, a coastal village in Ukraine * Stanislaus County, ...

''(pictured)''. He worked in Warsaw until the complete military

Partitions of Poland The Partitions of Poland were three partition (politics), partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that took place between 1772 and 1795, toward the end of the 18th century. They ended the existence of the state, resulting in the eli ...

. In 1791, he moved to St. Petersburg where the Empress gave him a hereditary knighthood. In

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

he devoted himself to

portrait painting Portrait painting is a Hierarchy of genres, genre in painting, where the intent is to represent a specific human subject. The term 'portrait painting' can also describe the actual painted portrait. Portraitists may create their work by commissio ...

, and amassed a large fortune. He painted the Empress Catherine II and Empress Maria Feodorovna (Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg) among others. He returned to Vienna in 1797 and became its honorary citizen in 1799. Pensioned in 1822, he died at Vienna on 11 February 1830.Johann Baptist Edler von Lampi (the elder).
Encyclopedia of Austria. Retrieved October 31, 2012. Both of his sons were also accomplished painters. The older one, Johann Baptist the Younger stayed first with him and later by himself in Russia for 13 years. His younger son, Francesco, or Franz Xaver (born in Klagenfurt in 1783) settled at

Congress Poland Congress Poland or Congress Kingdom of Poland, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland, was a polity created in 1815 by the Congress of Vienna as a semi-autonomous Polish state, a successor to Napoleon's Duchy of Warsaw. It was established w ...

for the rest of his life, estranged from his father. He became known as Franciszek Ksawery Lampi in Polish. He painted portraits and landscapes, exhibited at Warsaw Salons, and opened an art school there in 1841. In 1823 he travelled to Vienna,

Lublin Lublin is List of cities and towns in Poland, the ninth-largest city in Poland and the second-largest city of historical Lesser Poland. It is the capital and the centre of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 336,339 (December 2021). Lublin i ...

, and in 1830 to

Vilna Vilnius ( , ) is the capital of and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city in Lithuania and the List of cities in the Baltic states by population, most-populous city in the Baltic states. The city's estimated January 2025 population w ...

. After the

November Uprising The November Uprising (1830–31) (), also known as the Polish–Russian War 1830–31 or the Cadet Revolution, was an armed rebellion in Russian Partition, the heartland of Partitions of Poland, partitioned Poland against the Russian Empire. ...

against the Russians, he spent a few years in

Wrocław Wrocław is a city in southwestern Poland, and the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. It is the largest city and historical capital of the region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the Oder River in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Eu ...

. In 1840 he visited

Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...

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 ...

and

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

. He returned to Warsaw where he died in 1852. Franciszek Ksawery Lampi (Klagenfurt 1782 - Warszawa 1852)
(in Polish). Bio with Index and Bibliography. Pinakoteka ''Zascianek.pl''. Retrieved

Selected portraits

File:Lampi Stanislaus Augustus in a dressing-gown.jpg, ''King Stanisław II August'' (1788-1789),

National Museum A national museum can be a museum maintained and funded by a national government. In many countries it denotes a museum run by the central government, while other museums are run by regional or local governments. In the United States, most nati ...

File:Zavadskaya by Lampi.jpeg, '' Countess Zavadskaya
with her daughter'' File:Catherine II of Russia by J.B.Lampi (c.1791, Palace on the Water).jpg, ''

Catherine II of Russia Catherine II. (born Princess Sophie of Anhalt-Zerbst; 2 May 172917 November 1796), most commonly known as Catherine the Great, was the reigning empress of Russia from 1762 to 1796. She came to power after overthrowing her husband, Peter I ...

'' (circa 1791), Łazienki Palace Lampi Portrait of DeRibas Hermitage 1796.jpg, '' Osip Mikhailovich de Ribas''

References

Bibliography

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lampi the Elder, Johann Baptist von 1751 births 1830 deaths 18th-century Austrian painters 18th-century Austrian male artists Austrian male painters 19th-century Austrian painters 19th-century Austrian male artists 18th-century Italian painters Italian male painters 19th-century Italian painters Italian nobility Austrian nobility Austrian people of Italian descent People from Trentino Italian expatriates in Poland Edlers of Austria 19th-century Italian male artists 18th-century Italian male artists es:Juan Bautista Lampi#top