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Balthasar Denner (1685–1749): Portrait artist

by William Schroeder

Miniature portraits by Balthasar Denner of his wife Esther Winter and himself.

Balthasar Denner was born on November 15, 1685, in Altona a village on the right bank of the Elbe River about two kilometres west of Hamburg. His father was Jacob Denner (1659–1746), a Mennonite¹ minister, and his mother was Catharina Wiebe (1663–1743). Balthasar was the oldest child and the only son in a family of seven. An accident at the age of eight left the boy with a permanent injury. He walked with a limp for the rest of his life. His convalescence was very slow and he was forced to sit still for long periods of time. To cope with his boredom the boy sketched pictures of the people and things around him. Soon he could copy other paintings with amazing accuracy. When Balthasar was eleven his parents made arrangements for their son to have formal art lessons. His first teacher was a Dutch painter named Franz van Amama who taught him how to use watercolours. For a short time, while his father served as pastor in one of the Mennonite churches in Danzig, Balthasar received instruction there in the use of oil paints.

The Denner family moved back to Altona in 1701. Since their son had reached the age of sixteen they apprenticed him in a firm belonging to a rich uncle. Seeing that hard physical work was out of the question Balthasar was assigned to clerical duties. For the next six years he was busy writing letters, keeping records and balancing accounts. However, during his spare time he nurtured his artistic skills.

In 1707 at the age of twenty-two Balthasar Denner applied for and was accepted in the Berlin Academy of Art. Favourable conditions in Berlin had attracted many foreign artists especially from Paris and Holland. Soon the school was considered to be one of the best in northern Europe.

While still in Berlin in 1709 Denner painted the first portraits for which he was paid. The subjects were Duke Christian August administrator of Holstein-Gottorp and his sister Maria Elizabeth abbess of Quindlinburg. The Duke was so pleased with his picture that he invited Denner to come to the Gottorp Castle near Schleswdg to paint more portraits for him. His main project was a large group portrait measuring 1.78 metres by 1.38 metres of twenty-one members of the Duke’s court². News of this painting spread from city to city and Denner’s career as a portrait artist was launched. At no time in his life was he in need of commissions for court portraits. During the first few years of his career he maintained his art studio in his home in Altona and worked mostly in the Hamburg area, but as his fame spread lucrative contracts enticed him to leave the comforts of his home and temporarily relocate in distant cities in northern Europe.

Peter the Great had defeated the Swedish forces at Poltava in 1709 and gradually pushed them back onto their former territory. Early in 1716 the Czar decided to visit some of the cities in northern Europe. He quartered his army in Denmark and in Mecklenburg and then set out to visit Copenhagen, Berlin, Hamburg, Paris and Amsterdam. Wherever he went he gave and received or demanded lavish gifts. On his journey through Schleswig-Holstein he stayed in the Gottorp Castle where he saw Denner’s magnificent group portrait. Peter liked the painting and insisted on taking the masterpiece to Petersburg as a souvenir. It was only with the greatest difficulty that the Duke was able to persuade the Czar to accept a Holstein globe in its place. Peter did not appreciate the globe and according to tradition used it for target practice.

Balthasar Denner married Esther Winter in 1712. They had six children, five girls and one boy. In spite of the fact that Denner moved his wife and children from one court to another they were a happy family. The children frequently helped their father in his studio by entertaining his customers with vocal and instrumental music during the long tedious sessions and by painting the clothing and background after he had painted the face.

In 1720 Denner went to Hanover where he met many English lords and ladies who invited him to England. He accepted that invitation and took his family to London in 1721. En route they stopped in Rotterdam where they were guests of a well-connected English merchant named Ferly. Balthasar had brought with him a portrait of an old woman. The painting was a minutely detailed demonstration piece with which he hoped to impress his potential clients. Two Dutch painters and art critics, Adrean van der Werff and Karl van Mander, could only compare it to the Mona Lisa. In London the masterpiece caused great excitement and many rich and influential people came to see the painting for themselves. Finally the ambassador from Austria, Baron von Palm, persuaded Denner to send the painting to Vienna where King Karl VI (1685–1740) purchased it for 4700 imperial guilders. Two years later the Hapsburg King asked Denner to paint a portrait of an old man, which could serve as a matching counter-piece for the painting of an old woman. These paintings gave Denner international acclaim³, and his services were in ever-greater demand. It seemed that he had no equal and no competition. The rich and nobility in northern Europe contended to employ Denner as their portrait artist. Denner, who was always in frail health, could not tolerate the London smog and returned to his home in Altona in 1728.

During this phase of his career he painted a portrait that had an impact on Mennonite history and perhaps on European history. In the fall of 1740 Duke Frederick Karl of Holstein-Gottorp invited Denner to come to Kiel where he painted two life-size portraits of the Duke’s twelve-year-old son, Karl Peter Ulrich (1709–1762). Denner also made ten copies of one of the originals. The copies were sent to various courts in Europe. One of the originals was sent to Petersburg were it served as a silent reminder that Peter was an heir to the throne of Russia.

Peter’s mother Anna Petrovna (1708–1728) was the eldest daughter of Peter the Great. She died in exile in 1728 shortly after the birth of Peter Ulrich. In November 1741 Anna’s sister Elizabeth (1709–1762) led a successful coup and became the Czarina of Russia. Knowing that she would not marry nor have children, Elizabeth appointed a successor within a year of her accession. She adopted her orphaned nephew in 1742 and proclaimed him her heir. Two years later when Peter was 16, Elizabeth brought Sophia Augusta Frederika from Anhalt-Zerbst to Petersburg to be the wife of her adopted heir. When Sophia (Catherine II) came to the throne she was instrumental in bringing the Mennonites to Russia.

Czarina Elizabeth was so impressed with Denner’s painting of her adopted son, the future Czar Peter III, that she extended the most generous offer to the artist in 1742. She proposed to pay all his expenses plus an annual fee of one thousand ducats if he would come to Petersburg and serve as her resident portrait artist. Denner politely declined her offer.

This was also a time of pain and sorrow in the artist’s family. At the request of his aging parents Denner had moved back to his home and the Mennonite community in Altona. In a period of just over two years three members of the Denner family died and were buried in the Mennonite Cemetery on the Roosen Strasse in Altona. Balthasar’s mother Catharina Denner died on December 23, 1743. She was eighty years old. A few months later his beautiful and very gifted daughter Catharina fell ill and died on August 26, 1744. She was an accomplished vocal soloist, violinist and pianist. She had studied art under her father and was well on the way to fame as a miniature artist. Her early death was a great loss to the Denner family. Balthasar’s father Jacob Denner died on February 17, 1746, at the age of eighty-seven. He had served as a minister in the Mennonite Church for more than sixty years. Denner did not paint for about one year. Grief over the loss of loved ones had drained him of his artistic creativity.

When Denner was able to go back to work we find him swamped with commissions in Mecklenburg. During the seven years that Denner lived in London he developed a close friendship with Johan van Gool (1685–1763) whose home was in Rotterdam. Van Gool spent much time with the Denner family and learned to appreciate their hospitality and generosity. In 1749 Van Gool was collecting material for a biographical encyclopedia of Dutch artists and wanted to include a biography of Denne⁴. Denner mailed the requested material on February 14, 1749. As it turned out this was fortunate for posterity because Balthasar Denner died in Rostock on April 14, 1749. There were forty-six unfinished portraits in his studio at the time of his death . His wife Esther and three children Maria, Esther and Jacob survived Denner.

Throughout his entire career Denner had the pleasure of serving people who appreciated his work and showered him with acclaim. To this day many of his paintings can be found in art galleries in northern Europe.⁵ A signpost on a small street in Altona bears the name Balthasarweg and silently reminds those who pass by of the Denner family who lived there more than two centuries ago.

Endnotes

1. There was a Mennonite church in Altona since 1601. The first members were refugees from various provinces in the Netherlands.
2. The painting is now in the Oldenburg Castle in Eutin.
3. These two portraits are in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.
4. The University of Amsterdam has that encyclopedia.
5. The unfinished paintings are in the Schwerin Staatliches Museum. That museum has 75 Denner portraits.

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