Friedrich von Amerling

George F. Tyler (c. 1822 - 1897), Philadelphia, PA, by 1877

Sidney F. Tyler (c. 1852 - 1935), Philadelphia, PA, his son

George F. Tyler (1884–1947), Philadelphia, PA, his son

John Harrison Quarty (1901-1979), Chandler, Arizona, by the 1950s

Private Collection, United States

His Sale: Christie's New York, 25 Apr 2016, lot 45

Where acquired by the present owner

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Forty-Eighth Annual Exhibition, Spring 1877, no. 270. as Mother and Infant.

In this serene painting, nineteenth-century Austrian artist Friedrich von Amerling skillfully captures the intimacy of a moment between a mother and her sleeping child. This quiet moment is the epitome of Gemütlichkeit-- the feeling of comfort and warmth. Safely wrapped in her mother’s embrace, the child clutches a small rose which, by its close association with the Virgin Mary, introduces a religious undertone to the scene. Completed in 1850, not long after Amerling’s second trip to Italy, the influence of Italian painting is evident in the clarity of line, rich coloration of warm brown and red tones, native costume, and the use of a golden light to highlight the emotional and spiritual connections between mother and child. In addition, the mother’s gold wedding band leaves no doubt that the child was born within the bonds of wedlock, further emphasizing the themes of piety and propriety in this subtle character study, as well as offering insight into the social mores of the Biedermeier period.

Born in Vienna in 1803, Amerling was a highly successful portrait painter who studied under the English artist Thomas Lawrence from 1827-28. After he completed his studies, he returned to Vienna and built a reputation for himself at the court of Franz Josef. He secured numerous commissions from the Austrian Imperial House, as well as from many members of the nobility and other wealthy patrons. In 1878, he was himself elevated to the nobility and became Friedrich Ritter von Amerling. In addition to portraiture, Amerling also painted historic, genre, and landscape pictures. 

We are grateful to Dr. Sabine Grabner for confirming the authenticity of this work, which will be included in her forthcoming Friedrich von Amerling catalogue raisonné.