Bertel Thorwaldsen
Nationality: Danish/Icelandic
Date of birth: ca 1770
Place of birth: Copenhagen
Date of death: 1844
Place of death: Copenhagen
Category: sculptor
Identity:
A neoclassical sculptor of international fame, he worked mainly in Italy. When he returned to Denmark in 1838, he was received as a national hero. The Thorvaldsen Museum was built to house his works next to Christiansborg Palace.
Life:
En route to St Petersburg in 1848, it is likely that the Whistlers visited the Thorwaldsen Museum, and on 22-3 September 1848 Whistler's mother promised to send him a catalogue of it ( A.M. Whistler to J. Whistler, 15, 16 and 18 September 1848, #06363; 22 and 23 September 1848, #06364). Some years later she wrote to the young James that she remembered 'our running up to see the sculpture &c, & how enthusiastic you & Willie were!' (1-2 January 1855, GUW #06488).
It has been suggested that his sculpture might have partly inspired the composition of Arrangement in Grey and Black: Portrait of the Painter's Mother y101.
Bibliography:
The Correspondence of James McNeill Whistler, 1855-1903, edited by Margaret F. MacDonald, Patricia de Montfort and Nigel Thorp; including The Correspondence of Anna McNeill Whistler, 1855-1880, edited by Georgia Toutziari. Online edition, University of Glasgow.
MacDonald, Margaret F., (ed.) Whistler's Mother: An American Icon, Aldershot and Burlington, 2003 .
'Bertel Thorwaldsen', Wikipedia.
