August von Bayer

August von Bayer (1803–1875) was a German painter of architectural subjects

Life

Bayer was born in May 1803 into a patrician Catholic family in Rorschach.^[1] He studied architecture under Weinbrenner, at Karlsruhe. In the mid-1820s he went to Munich, with the intention of pursuing a career in architecture, but soon turned to painting instead. His architectural education did, however provide him with a knowledge of construction rare amongst painters. He combined this knowledge with outstanding gifts as a colourist, which allowed him to tackle the most subtle effects of light.^[1]

In the early 1840s he moved to Baden-Baden, where his work came to the attention of a wider circle of prominent admirers, including Friedrich Wilhelm IV, King of Hanover, and Queen Augusta of Prussia. He spent the winters in Karlsruhe.^[1] In 1853 he was appointed him conservator of the monuments and antiquities in the Grand Duchy of Baden,^[2] a post to which he brought more of an aesthetic than a scientific outlook.^[1]

His last years were clouded by illness. He died in Karlsruhe on 2 February 1875.^[1]

Works

Among his best works are:^[2]

• The interior of the Frauenkirche at Munich.
• A portion of the Cathedral at Chur.
• The Convent of Maulbronn.
• The Organ Player (lithographed hy Fr. Hohe).
• An interior of a Cloister (lithographed by Fr. Hohe) .

There are four works by him in the Pinakothek at Munich.

See also

• List of German painters

References

Sources

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Bryan, Michael (1886). "Bayer, August von". In Graves, Robert Edmund (ed.). Bryan's Dictionary of Painters and Engravers (A–K). Vol. I (3rd ed.). London: George Bell & Sons.