Wilhelm Marstrand
Portrait of Mrs. Vilhelmine Heise, born Hage (1838-1912), 1856
Oil on canvas, 62 x 49 cm.
Inventory number: 0116NMK
Bequest from Vilhelmine and Alfred Hage, 1891. Bestowed to the museum in 1908
Marstrand received many commissions from Alfred Hage and ended up portraying all three generations of the wealthy merchant’s family. With her delicate and graceful appearance, Alfred Hage’s daughter Vilhelmine became the artist’s favourite model by far. This is a portrait of a young Vilhelmine wearing a loose white shawl and a black silk dress. In addition to reproducing her beauty, the artist also sought to accurately render the qualities of the various materials, which can be seen in the varying luster of the silk, the young lady’s shining hair and the semi-transparent scarf.
Wilhelm Marstrand (1810-1873)
Marstrand was among C.W. Eckersberg’s students and was, as the only one, very interested in narrative and illustrative painting. Marstrand worked with genre painting, literary subjects, portraiture and, in later years, history painting. He was frequently employed as a portraitist and painted a series of portraits of members of the Hage family, among others. Marstrand travelled throughout his life in the larger European countries such as Italy, France, Germany and England. He was particularly fascinated by Italy, where he stayed for several years. From here, he became a major producer of peculiar, touching, and often humorous or ironic depictions of the Italian folk life that so fascinated him.
