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Carl Friedrich Deiker
Vigilant Fox - The psyche of the fox -

1854

About the Item

Carl Friedrich Deiker (1838 Wetzlar - 1892 Düsseldorf). Vigilant fox. Pencil drawing on brown paper, 18 × 29.5 cm (inside measurement), 31.5 x 43.5 cm (mount), signed and dated "Deiker [18]54" at lower right. - a little bit stained, with a light water stain at lower right About the artwork Carl Friedrich Deiker's consummate ability to depict animals is already evident in this early work. He brought a whole new psychological dimension to animal painting, so that one could literally speak of animal portraits. The naturalistic appearance of the fox alone makes it seem alive. Every strand of muscle, even every hair, is captured, which requires an intensive artistic study of animal anatomy and physiology. But the fox's real liveliness comes not from its natural appearance, but from its internal movement: Stretched out, it has been brought out of rest. It turns around and, with its ears pricked up, looks intently in the direction from which it has seen something. His mouth is slightly open and his pointed teeth are bared, as if he were growling. Tension gradually takes hold of his whole body. While the hind legs were still in a relaxed position, closely observed by Deiker, one front leg was already raised, ready to begin a rising movement. The fox seems so alarmed with all its senses that one gets the impression that, at any moment, its tail will move jerkily and the animal will jump up. While wild animals have traditionally been portrayed as beasts or anthropomorphised, often for caricatural purposes, Deiker explores their inherent nature by attempting to capture their psychic impulses. The wild animal is neither bestial nor human, but a creature in its own right, valued by Deiker for its own sake. In this way, he brought the dignity of the animal into representation and raised animal painting to a whole new artistic level. About the artist Carl Friedrich Deiker was the son of the drawing teacher Christian Friedrich Deiker and the younger brother of the animal painter Johannes Deiker. In addition to the family art lessons, Christian Friedrich shared a studio with his brother Johannes at Braunfels Castle, Deiker attended the drawing academy in Hanau, and from 1858 he was a student at the Karlsruhe Art Academy, where he studied under the landscape painter Johann Wilhelm Schirmer. Carl Friedrich Deiker was already in demand as an artist during his first year: Grand Duke Frederick I of Baden, Margrave Max of Baden and Grand Duke Michael of Russia bought hunting scenes by him. In 1859 he went on a study trip to the Reinhardswald. Just as the Barbizon School had rediscovered the landscape, Deiker opened up the forest for animal painting. From 1861-64 Deiker had his own studio in Karlsruhe, then moved to Düsseldorf, where his brother Johannes followed four years later. Deiker married a daughter of the landscape painter Karl Hilger and remained in Düsseldorf until his death. In 1868 he finally achieved international fame with his painting 'Pursued Noble Deer' and was regarded as a virtuoso new founder of animal painting. "Deiker brought for the first time a truly great artistic quality to animal painting [...]". - Hans Vollmer From 1870 he participated in the academic art exhibitions in Berlin, Dresden, Munich and Hanover. He was also very busy as an illustrator. He drew for the Gartenlaube, the Salon, the Universum, and produced many of the finely illustrated hunting and animal books of the period. He also worked as a printmaker, while his oil paintings circulated as reprints by Franz Dinger. From 1865 to 1892 Deiker was a member of the artists' association Malkasten. Carl Friedrich Deiker's life's work was honoured with a large posthumous memorial exhibition at the Düsseldorf Kunsthalle in 1892. His son Carl Deiker, born in 1879, also became a painter. Selection of art museums that own works by Carl Friedrich Deiker: Hamburger Kunsthalle / Kunsthalle Karlsruhe / Kunstmuseum Düsseldorf / Wallraff Richartz Cologne. Selected Bibliography H. Schmidt: Johannes and Carl Friedrich Deiker. A contribution to animal and hunting painting in the 19th century, Wetzlar 1986. Thank you for your interest! I hope I have been able to explain to you the special character of the artwork. If you have any questions of any kind, please feel free to contact me. I wish you many more discoveries in the realm of art, Dr Martin Kirves GERMAN VERSION Carl Friedrich Deiker (1838 Wetzlar - 1892 Düsseldorf). Wachsamer Fuchs. Bleistiftzeichnung auf braunem Papier, 18 × 29,5 cm (Innenmaß), 31,5 x 43,5 (Passepartout), rechts unten signiert und datiert „Deiker [18]54“. - etwas stockfleckig, rechts unten mit leichtem Wasserrand zum Werk Bereits bei diesem frühen Werk Carl Friedrich Deikers zeigt sich die vollendete Fähigkeit des Künstlers, Tiere darzustellen. Er bringt eine ganz neue psychologische Dimension in die Tiermalerei ein, so dass regelrecht von Tierporträts gesprochen werden kann. Schon aufgrund seiner naturalistischen Erscheinung wirkt der Fuchs wie lebendig. Jeder Muskelstrang, ja jedes einzelne Härchen ist ‚haargenau‘ getroffen, was ein intensives künstlerisches Studium der Tieranatomie und -physiologie voraussetzt. Seine eigentliche Lebendigkeit gewinnt der Fuchs aber nicht durch seine naturgemäße Erscheinung, sondern durch seine innere Regung: Ausgestreckt hingelagert, wurde er aus der Ruhe gebracht. Er wendet sich um und blickt mit gespitzten Ohren gespannt in die Richtung, aus welcher er etwas gewahrt hat. Dabei ist sein Maul leicht geöffnet und die spitzen Zähne entblößt als ob er knurren würde. Die Anspannung nimmt allmählich von seinem ganzen Körper Besitz. Während die Hinterläufe noch in einer von Deiker genau beobachteten entspannten Haltung liegen, ist der eine Vorderlauf bereits aufgerichtet, bereit eine Aufstehbewegung zu initiieren. Der Fuchs wirkt mit allen seinen Sinnen derart alarmiert, dass sich der Eindruck einstellt, sein Schwanz würde sich im nächsten Augenblick ruckartig bewegen und das Tier aufspringen. Waren Wildtiere zuvor vor allem als Bestien dargestellt oder – oftmals zu karikierenden Zwecken – anthropomorphisiert worden, erkundet Deiker das ihnen eigene Wesen, indem er die psychischen Regungen der Tiere zu erfassen sucht. Das Wildtier ist weder bestialisch noch menschlich, sondern ein ganz eigenes Geschöpf, das von Deiker um seiner selbst willen gewürdigt wird. Damit bringt er die Würde des Tieres zur Darstellung und hebt die Tiermalerei auf ein ganz neues künstlerisches Niveau. zum Künstler Carl Friedrich Deiker war Sohn des Zeichenlehrers Christian Friedrich Deiker und der jüngere Bruder des Tiermalers Johannes Deiker. Neben dem familiären künstlerischen Unterricht, Christian Friedrich teilte sich zusammen mit seinem Bruder Johannes ein Atelier im Schloss Braunfels, besuchte Deiker die Zeichenakademie in Hanau und war ab 1858 Student der Kunstakademie Karlsruhe, wo er bei dem Landschaftsmaler Johann Wilhelm Schirmer lernte. Bereits im ersten Studienjahr war Carl Friedrich Deiker ein gefragter Künstler: Der Großherzog Friedrich I. von Baden, der Markgraf Max von Baden und Großfürst Michael von Russland erwarben Jagdstücke aus seiner Hand. 1859 erfolgte eine Studienreise in den Reinhardswald. So wie die Schule von Barbizon die Landschaft für die Landschaftsmalerei neu entdeckte, erschloss Deiker den Wald für die Tiermalerei. Von 1861-64 führte Deiker ein eigenes Atelier in Karlsruhe, um dann nach Düsseldorf überzusiedeln, wohin ihm sein Bruder Johannes vier Jahre später nachfolgte. Deiker ehelichte eine Tochter des Landschaftsmalers Karl Hilger und verblieb bis zu seinem Tod in Düsseldorf. Mit dem Bild „Verfolgter Edelhirsch“ gelangte er 1868 endgültig zu internationalem Renommee und galt als virtuoser Neubegründer der Tiermalerei. „Deiker brachte zuerst einen wirklich großen künstlerischen Zug in die Tiermalerei […].“ - Hans Vollmer Ab 1870 beschickte er die akademische Kunstausstellungen in Berlin, Dresden, München und Hannover. Zudem war er eifrig als Illustrator tätig. Er zeichnete für die Gartenlaube, den Salon, das Universum und fertigte zahlreiche Vorlagen für die damals hochwertig illustrierten Jagd- und Tierbücher an. Auch war er selbst als Druckgrafiker tätig, während seine Ölbilder als Nachstiche von Franz Dinger kursierten. Von 1865 bis 1892 war Deiker Mitglied in der Künstlervereinigung Malkasten. Mit einer großen posthumen Gedächtnisausstellung in der Düsseldorfer Kunsthalle wurde 1892 das Lebenswerk Carl Friedrich Deikers gewürdigt. Sein 1879 geborener Sohn, Carl Deiker, wurde ebenfalls Maler. Auswahl an Kunstmuseen, die Werke von Carl Friedrich Deiker besitzen: Hamburger Kunsthalle / Kunsthalle Karlsruhe / Kunstmuseum Düsseldorf / Wallraff Richartz Köln Auswahlbibliographie H. Schmidt: Johannes und Carl Friedrich Deiker. Ein Beitrag zur Tier- und Jagdmalerei im 19. Jahrhundert, Wetzlar 1986. Vielen Dank für Ihr Interesse! Ich hoffe, ich habe Ihnen den besonderen Charakter des Kunstwerks näherbringen können. Bei Fragen jeglicher Art können Sie mich gerne kontaktieren. Ich wünsche Ihnen noch viele Entdeckungen im Reich der Kunst, Dr. Martin Kirves
  • Creator:
    Carl Friedrich Deiker (German)
  • Creation Year:
    1854
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 7.09 in (18 cm)Width: 11.62 in (29.5 cm)
  • Medium:
  • Movement & Style:
  • Period:
  • Condition:
  • Gallery Location:
    Berlin, DE
  • Reference Number:
    1stDibs: LU2438212304312
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