Wilhelm Rudolf Jordan (4 May 1810,

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 ...

– 20 March 1887,

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in the state after Cologne and the List of cities in Germany with more than 100,000 inhabitants, seventh-largest city ...

) was a German

genre Genre () is any style or form of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other fo ...

painter, illustrator, etcher and art teacher.

Biography

His father was a member of the Judicial Council and he was a descendant of Charles-Étienne Jordan; advisor to

Frederick the Great Frederick II (; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was the monarch of Prussia from 1740 until his death in 1786. He was the last Hohenzollern monarch titled ''King in Prussia'', declaring himself ''King of Prussia'' after annexing Royal Prussia ...

. After completing his basic artistic studies with

Karl Wilhelm Wach Karl (or Carl) Wilhelm Wach (11 September 1787 – 24 November 1845) was a German painter. Life Wach was born in Berlin in 1787, studied art at the Prussian Academy of Arts and was a pupil of painter Karl Kretschmar. At the age of just 20, Wach ...

at his private school in Berlin, Jordan moved to the

Kunstakademie Düsseldorf The Kunstakademie Düsseldorf is the academy of fine arts of the state of North Rhine Westphalia at the city of Düsseldorf, Germany. Notable artists who studied or taught at the academy include Joseph Beuys, Gerhard Richter, Blinky Palermo, Ma ...

, where he took master classes with

Friedrich Wilhelm Schadow Friedrich Wilhelm von Schadow (7 September 1789 – 19 March 1862) was a German Romantic painter. Biography He was born in Berlin, the second son of the sculptor Johann Gottfried Schadow, who gave him his first lessons in drawing. He then tur ...

and

Karl Ferdinand Sohn Karl Ferdinand Sohn (10 December 1805 in Berlin – 25 November 1867 in Cologne) was a German painter of the Düsseldorf school of painting. Biography He was born in Berlin and started his studies at the age of eighteen under Friedrich Wilhelm ...

. In 1837, he became a member of the

Prussian Academy of Arts The Prussian Academy of Arts () was a state arts academy first established in 1694 by prince-elector Frederick III of Electorate of Brandenburg, Brandenburg in Berlin, in personal union Duke Frederick I of Prussia, and later king in Kingdom of ...

. He graduated from the Kunstakademie in 1840 and, from 1848, operated his own studio; creating genre scenes and giving lessons. He is considered to be one of the founders of the

ethnographic Ethnography is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of individual cultures. It explores cultural phenomena from the point of view of the subject of the study. Ethnography is also a type of social research that involves examining ...

approach to genre painting. During this time, he was named a ""; a largely honorary title. After 1843, following the success of his painting "Heiratsantrag auf Helgoland" (Marriage Proposal in

Helgoland Heligoland (; , ; Heligolandic Frisian: , , Mooring Frisian: , ) is a small archipelago in the North Sea. The islands were historically possessions of Denmark, then became possessions of the United Kingdom from 1807 to 1890. Since 1890, the ...

), he devoted himself mostly to portraying fisherman and sailors, which involved frequent journeys to Belgium, Holland and France. Many of these works became popular and were widely disseminated as

lithograph Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the miscibility, immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by ...

s and engravings. Rudolf jordan um 1880

In 1848, he was one of the founders of "

Malkasten Malkasten (English: "Paintbox") is a progressive German artists' association, founded in Düsseldorf in 1848, during the German revolutions of 1848–1849, March Revolution. Since 1867, their headquarters have been in the Düsseldorf-Pempelfort, P ...

", a progressive art society in Düsseldorf. That same year, during the

Revolution In political science, a revolution (, 'a turn around') is a rapid, fundamental transformation of a society's class, state, ethnic or religious structures. According to sociologist Jack Goldstone, all revolutions contain "a common set of elements ...

, he served as a member of the Bürgerwehr (

Vigilance committee A vigilance committee is a group of private citizens who take it upon themselves to administer law and order or exercise power in places where they consider the governmental structures or actions inadequate. Prominent historical examples of vigi ...

) under Commander

Lorenz Clasen Lorenz Clasen (14 December 1812, Düsseldorf - 31 May 1899, Leipzig) was a German history painter and author; best known for his frequently reproduced painting, "Germania auf der Wacht am Rhein" (Germania at Watch on the Rhein), in the town hal ...

, also a painter by profession. In 1869, he was awarded the

Order of the Red Eagle The Order of the Red Eagle () was an order of chivalry of the Kingdom of Prussia. It was awarded to both military personnel and civilians, to recognize valor in combat, excellence in military leadership, long and faithful service to the kingdom, o ...

. A year before his death, he was presented with the Order of the Crown. He was also a recipient of the Commander's Cross in the

Order of Vasa The Royal Order of Vasa () is a Swedish order of chivalry founded on 29 May 1772 by Gustav III, King Gustav III. It is awarded to Swedish citizens for service to state and society especially in the fields of agriculture, mining and commerce. His ...

. His first wife, Sophie von Mülmann (1811–1863), was a painter of some note.

Notable students

* Anton Dieffenbach * Ernestine Friedrichsen * Albert Kindler * Heinrich Ludwig Philippi * Henry Ritter * Raphael Ritz * Emil Gottlieb Schuback * Richard Sohn * Benjamin Vautier * Josef Wilhelm Wallander

Selected illustrations and paintings

''More digitalized illustrations may be found in the corresponding article on German Wikipedia'' * K. Stieler, H. Wachenhusen, F.W. Hackländer: ''Rheinfahrt. Von den Quellen des Rheins bis zum Meere.'' (From the Source of the Rhine to the Sea), Kröner, Stuttgart 1875
Digitalized online
* Johann Karl Musäus and Julius Ludwig Klee (eds.). ''Volksmährchen der Deutschen.'' (Popular Tales) with woodcuts and original drawings, Mayer und Wigand, Leipzig 1842
Digitalized online
Rudolf Jordan Mutter mit Kind.jpg, Mother and Child Rudolf Jordan Heimkehr des Fischers 1837.jpg, The Fishermen's Homecoming Rudolf Jordan Heiratsantrag a Helgoland.JPG, Marriage Proposal in Helgoland Jordan-Cliffs.jpg, The Cliffs Rudolf Jordan - Storm by the Coast.jpg, Storm by the Coast

Sources

* "Jordan, Rudolf". In: Hermann Alexander Müller: ''Biographisches Künstler-Lexikon. Die bekanntesten Zeitgenossen auf dem Gebiet der bildenden Künste aller Länder mit Angabe ihrer Werke''. Bibliographisches Institut, Leipzig 1882 * "Jordan, Rudolf". In:

Thieme-Becker Thieme-Becker is a German biographical dictionary of artists. Thieme-Becker The dictionary was begun under the editorship of Ulrich Thieme (1865–1922) (volumes one to fifteen) and Felix Becker (1864–1928) (volumes one to four). It was compl ...

, ''Allgemeines Lexikon der Bildenden Künstler von der Antike bis zur Gegenwart''. Vol.19, E. A. Seemann, Leipzig 1926, pgs.161–162. * Hans Paffrath/Kunstmuseum Düsseldorf: ''Lexikon der Düsseldorfer Malerschule''. Vol.2, Bruckmann, München 1998, , pgs.193–196

External links

ArtNet: More works by Jordan.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jordan, Rudolf 1810 births 1887 deaths Painters from the Kingdom of Prussia 19th-century German painters 19th-century German male artists German genre painters Kunstakademie Düsseldorf alumni 19th-century German illustrators Recipients of the Order of Vasa

Biography

Notable students

Selected illustrations and paintings

Sources

Further reading

External links