Christen Købke was almost forgotten after his early death, but is today considered one of the most outstanding landscape artists and portraitists from the period 1800-1850. Købke was a pupil of C.W. Eckersberg, from whom he derived his interest in nature. Later, he distanced himself from Eckersberg’s sober attitude and became more romantic in expression. In 1838-40 he went to Berlin and Dresden and then on to Italy. Købke applied for admission to the prestigious Academy of Art in Copenhagen in 1846 but he was rejected. He died of pneumonia two years later, and the Danish public paid little notice. At the end of the 1800s, scholars and the public began to appreciate Købke, leading to his current reputation as the most internationally renowned Danish painter of his generation. Købke’s well-composed and harmonious paintings are today internationally recognised especially for their colouristic qualities and their poetic portrayal of everyday life.
Selected Exhibitions:
London 1862.
Jeu de Paume, Paris 1928
The National Gallery of Fine Arts, Copenhagen : 1941
Danish Art Treasures, Victoria and Albert Museum, London 1948
The Golden Age of Danish Painting, London, Paris 1984
The Golden Age of Danish Painting, Los Angeles, N.Y. 1993-94.
Auction prices:
Christen Købke is listed in artprice.com where he has been sold for $58,600.
(Bruun Rasmussen, Copenhagen. 05-03-2003. Lot No: 1548)
Click here to view more paintings online by Köbke: http://www.assistens.dk/kobke.htm
Øbro Art Gallery 