The Berlin Gemäldegalerie of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin is home to a small but important collection of German paintings from the 17th century. They include, for example, paintings by Adam Elsheimer, Johann Heinrich Schönfeld and Hans Rottenhammer. As part of a long-standing collaboration between Prof. Andreas Tacke (Trier University) and staff at the Gemäldegalerie, for the first time, a scholarly collection catalogue has been produced on this section of the museum’s holdings.
The aim was to bring together findings about the provenance, function and attribution of the paintings, as well as about the genesis of the images, the development of the subjects, motifs and the painterly techniques applied, and to publish this in a single catalogue, which will provide a basis for future research. This was carried out in close collaboration with art historians and conservator-restorers. In addition to art-historical analysis, the publication was informed by the findings of technical examinations of the paintings. The works and groups of works selected were each accompanied by biographies of the artists concerned.
The critical collection catalogue of the German paintings of the 17th century was released in 2020 through Michael Imhof Verlag (Petersberg):
Andreas Tacke (ed.), Die deutschen Gemälde des 17. Jahrhunderts: Kritischer Bestandskatalog. Produced in collaboration with Rainer Michaelis, with technical findings from work by Ute Stehr and Sandra Stelzig, and contributions on clothing and costumes by Christine Waidenschlager, Petersberg 2020.
Objectives and outcomes: The production of a critical collection catalogue of the German paintings of the 17th century in the holdings of the Gemäldegalerie of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
Project overseen by: Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Trier University
Lead researchers: Dr Rainer Michaelis (former Deputy Director and advisor on German painting of the 17th century at the Gemäldegalerie), Prof. Andreas Tacke (Trier University)
Project participants: Dr Ute Stehr (paintings conservator at the Gemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin), Sandra Stelzig (paintings conservator at the Gemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin), Christoph Schmidt (technical photographer at the Gemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin), Christine Waidenschlager (costume and textile historian at the Kunstgewerbemuseum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin), Rainer Wendler (formerly a wood restorer at the Gemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin)
Project duration: Completed in spring of 2020