Mathilda Wilhelmina Rotkirch (28 July 1813 – 6 March 1842) was a Finnish painter. She is often referred to as the first female artist in

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

. She principally made

portrait A portrait is a portrait painting, painting, portrait photography, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expressions are predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, Personality type ...

paintings.

Biography

Rotkirch was born in

Borgå Porvoo (; sv, Borgå ; la, Borgoa) is a city and a municipality in the Uusimaa region of Finland, situated on the southern coast about east of the city border of Helsinki and about from the city centre. Porvoo was one of the six medieval to ...

, Finland. She was the daughter of

Baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...

Karl Fredrik Rotkirch and Augusta Fredrika Elisabeth Rotkirch née Aminoff. In the spring of 1833, she made his first study trip to

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

where she studied with Johan Gustaf Sandberg and

Robert Wilhelm Ekman Robert Wilhelm Ekman (August 13, 1808 – February 19, 1873), R. W. Ekman, was a significant teacher and painter of the Finnish romantic portraits and early national romanticism. Childhood and Arts Education Robert Ekman was born in Uusikaupun ...

. She was a student at the

Royal Swedish Academy of Arts The Royal Swedish Academy of Fine Arts ( sv, Kungliga Akademien för de fria konsterna), commonly called the Royal Academy, is located in Stockholm, Sweden. An independent organization that promotes the development of painting, sculpture, architec ...

between 1833 and 1838. She took a study trip in 1840–1841 along with artist Sophie Aminoff (1808–1862) and her husband Carl Reuterskiöld, on a journey through Europe. They visited Lübeck, Hamburg, Kassel, Strasbourg, Bern, Geneva, Milan and Paris, where she studied with the Swedish painter and designer

Per Wickenberg Petter Gabriel Wickenberg, known as Pehr (1 October 1812- 19 December 1846) was a Swedish painter and designer who specialized in landscapes with figures. Biography Wickenberg was born in Malmö, Sweden. He was the son of Jonas Wickenberg and ...

(1812–1846). She died of a lung ailment in

Turku Turku ( ; ; sv, Åbo, ) is a city and former capital on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River, in the region of Finland Proper (''Varsinais-Suomi'') and the former Turku and Pori Province (''Turun ja Porin lääni''; ...

during 1842 at the age of 28. She was buried in the family grave at Näsebacken next to

Porvoo Porvoo (; sv, Borgå ; la, Borgoa) is a city and a municipality in the Uusimaa region of Finland, situated on the southern coast about east of the city border of Helsinki and about from the city centre. Porvoo was one of the six medieval to ...

. Rotkirch was represented in an exhibition in Finland in 1847. She is represented at both Ateneum and

Cygnaeus Gallery The Cygnaeus Gallery ( fi, Cygnaeuksen galleria, sv, Cygnaei galleri) is an art gallery in Helsinki. The art gallery was founded by the professor of aesthetics Fredrik Cygnaeus. It was built as a villa in 1869–1870 to designs by architect J.F.W ...

References

Literature

* Kuurne, Jouni: ''Mathilda Rotkirch: Taiteilija ja matkailija.'' 2002. ** * Westermarck, Helena: Mathilda Rotkirch. ''Historiska och litteraturhistoriska studier'' 2, pp. 8–78. Svensk Litteratursällskap i Finland, Helsingfors 1926. * Willner-Rönnholm, Margareta: Målarinnan Mathilda Rotkirch: En bortglömd pionjär? ''Finsk Tidskrift'', 1/2003. {{DEFAULTSORT:Rotkirch, Mathilda 1813 births 1842 deaths 19th-century Finnish nobility 19th-century Finnish women artists 19th-century Finnish painters Finnish women painters