PETER FENDI AND HIS CIRCLE

The exhibition is devoted to the leading watercolourists of the Biedermeier period in Vienna. The majority of the 118 works on paper and 22 paintings are drawn from the Albertina’s extensive collection of 19th century watercolours.

Peter Fendi (1796-1842) ranks among the most important Austrian artists of his day, along with Ferdinand Georg Waldmüller and Josef Danhauser. Fendi, whose preferred subjects were family portraits and touching scenes of pathos, is considered the founder of Viennese genre painting. His immediate circle of pupils included Albert Schindler (1805-1861) and Friedrich Treml (1816-1852), as well as Carl Schindler (1821-1842), who would die at a young age. These artists took watercolour painting to new heights of technical brilliance and expressiveness.