Friedrich von Amerling

Friedrich von Amerling's paintings center on portraiture, using light, pose, and clothing to shape the presentation of a sitter. Faces are carefully modeled, while fabrics and surrounding space help distinguish formal commissions from more intimate studies. His portrait of Rudolf von Arthaber with his children brings individual likenesses into a family composition. These paintings connect the conventions of public portraiture with the personal relationships and domestic settings of nineteenth-century Vienna.