Robert Schiess (1896–1956) was a

Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...

painter Painting is a Visual arts, visual art, which is characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called "matrix" or "Support (art), support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with ...

and member of the

Pontifical Swiss Guard The Pontifical Swiss Guard,; ; ; ; , %5BCorps of the Pontifical Swiss Guard%5D. ''vatican.va'' (in Italian). Retrieved 19 July 2022. also known as the Papal Swiss Guard or simply Swiss Guard,Swiss Guards , History, Vatican, Uniform, Require ...

Life

Robert Schiess was born in 1896 in

Cham, Switzerland Cham is a municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Zug (canton), Zug in Switzerland. Location Cham is located on the northern shore of Lake Zug, northwest of the cantonal capital of Zug. Surrounding ...

. After learning to paint in

Altdorf, Uri Altdorf () is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in Switzerland. It is the capital of the Cantons of Switzerland, Swiss canton of Canton of Uri, Uri and retains historic town privileges. It is the place where, according to the legend, ...

, Schiess worked in

Lucerne Lucerne ( ) or Luzern ()Other languages: ; ; ; . is a city in central Switzerland, in the Languages of Switzerland, German-speaking portion of the country. Lucerne is the capital of the canton of Lucerne and part of the Lucerne (district), di ...

and in 1920 took a study trip to

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

to further refine his artistry. In 1923, Schiess began serving with the

Vatican City Vatican City, officially the Vatican City State (; ), is a Landlocked country, landlocked sovereign state and city-state; it is enclaved within Rome, the capital city of Italy and Bishop of Rome, seat of the Catholic Church. It became inde ...

and continued his education here until 1927. During his time in Italy, Schiess was introduced to famous painter

Philip de László Philip Alexius László de Lombos (born Fülöp Laub; ; 30 April 1869 – 22 November 1937), known professionally as Philip de László, was an Anglo-Hungarian painter known particularly for his portraits of royal and aristocratic personages. ...

, and in 1928 the two artists travelled throughout the world to destinations including Africa, America, Spain and France. In 1933, Schiess returned to Italy and again began to serve with the Swiss Guard, a position in which he remained until 1951. During his time serving as a Swiss Guard, Schiess impressed many with his artistic talents, including the pontiff who had him design and paint new

frescoes Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...

for the church of St. Martin and St. Sebastian which was built for the Swiss Guards in 1568. As well as work for the Vatican, he created pictures for wealthy citizens. Schiess also enjoyed recreating the works of

old masters In art history, "Old Master" (or "old master")Old Masters De ...

, which brought him great recognition for his skills. As a result, he was appointed by the Vatican to create portraits of all the colonels of the Swiss Guard. From 1952 Schiess lived on the island of

Ischia Ischia ( , , ) is a volcanic island in the Tyrrhenian Sea. It lies at the northern end of the Gulf of Naples, about from the city of Naples. It is the largest of the Phlegrean Islands. Although inhabited since the Bronze Age, as a Ancient G ...

, where he went on to marry in 1955. Shortly after, Schiess became ill and died in 1956 at the age of 60.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schiess, Robert 20th-century Swiss painters Swiss male painters 1896 births 1956 deaths People from Cham, Switzerland 20th-century Swiss male artists Swiss Guard