Henri Lehmann

Key facts

Lived

1814–1882, German

Movement

• portrait

Works held in

14 museums^[1]

• The fisherman and the nymph

  Centre national des arts plastiques

  Paris, France

  1 works

  Museum details

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• What is Henri Lehmann known for?+

  Henri Lehmann is known for painting portraits of notable figures such as Chopin, Liszt, Stendhal, and Charles Gounod. His portrait list reads as a directory of mid-nineteenth-century Parisian cultural life.
• What is Henri Lehmann's most famous work?+

  It is difficult to name Henri Lehmann's single most famous work, as his career spanned many decades and encompassed a variety of subjects. He was a successful portraitist, history painter, and religious painter. Lehmann's early training was in the academic tradition, and he gained recognition for large-scale compositions, often with allegorical themes. He received commissions for murals in Parisian churches and government buildings. These works, such as those in the Palais du Luxembourg, established his reputation. Later in his career, Lehmann focused increasingly on portraiture. He painted many prominent figures of his time, including members of the French aristocracy and artistic circles. These portraits display his skill in capturing likeness and character. Lehmann's artistic output was diverse, making it challenging to identify one definitive piece that overshadows all others. His fame rests on his overall contribution to French art during the 19th century.
• What should I know about Henri Lehmann's prints?+

  Henri Lehmann (1814-1882) was a German-born French painter. While he is better known for his paintings, Lehmann also produced prints. When considering Lehmann's prints, it is useful to understand some basics of printmaking. An original print is conceived as a print and executed solely as a print. Each print in the edition is an original, printed individually from a plate, stone, screen, or block created for that purpose. The artist decides the number of prints in the edition. Numbering accounts for the prints; for example, 12/25 means it is print number 12 of an edition of 25. The number of prints pulled is limited because plates made by hand can only withstand a certain amount of use before wearing out. Some publishers impose their own limits to increase a print’s value. These limits may be set as high as 700 to 1,000 impressions, but some prints are limited to 250 to 500, making them highly prized by collectors. The edition claim is written as a pair of numbers on the left bottom margin of the print. The title of the print is written in the middle of the bottom margin, and the signature is on the right.
• What style or movement did Henri Lehmann belong to?+

  Based on the reference passages, it's challenging to definitively place Henri Lehmann within a specific style or movement. The passages discuss the work of Anton Giulio Bragaglia and his brother, who invented "photodynamism". Their work aimed to capture the sensation of movement through blurred-motion photographs. These images often depicted subjects in successive stages of action, creating a dematerialised effect. Bragaglia prioritised conveying energy and rhythm over representational accuracy. His ideas resonated with the Futurist painters, who also sought to liberate artistic creations from the constraints of exact reproduction. The Futurist leader Marinetti supported photodynamic research, leading to portraits of Futurist members. However, without additional information, it's difficult to connect Lehmann directly to this movement.
• What techniques or materials did Henri Lehmann use?+

  Henri Lehmann was a painter, draughtsman and teacher, working primarily in academic styles. He is known for his portraits, history paintings and decorative schemes. Lehmann studied oil painting with Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres in Paris. He adopted Ingres's linear precision, clear forms and smooth finish. Lehmann's early portraits show this influence. His later work moved toward a looser, more painterly style, perhaps influenced by Romanticism. He also executed large-scale decorative projects. These included murals for the Palais de Justice and the Hôtel de Ville in Paris. For these, he employed the technique of peinture à la cire (wax painting). This method, popular in antiquity, involves mixing pigments with molten wax. The wax creates a durable, matte surface. It protects the colours from fading and the effects of humidity. Wax painting allowed Lehmann to create monumental works suited to public spaces. He also produced numerous drawings in pencil, chalk and ink, often as studies for his paintings.
• What was Henri Lehmann known for?+

  Henri Lehmann was a 19th-century painter known primarily for his portraits and history paintings. Born in Kiel, Germany, in 1814, he later became a naturalised French citizen. Lehmann studied under Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres in Paris, and his early work shows the influence of this training, particularly in its emphasis on line and form. He exhibited at the Salon from 1835 onwards, achieving considerable success and recognition. His portraits often depicted prominent figures of the time. Lehmann also received commissions for large-scale decorative works in public buildings, including the Palais du Luxembourg and the Church of Sainte-Clothilde in Paris. These paintings often depicted scenes from history or mythology. Lehmann died in Paris in 1882.
• When did Henri Lehmann live and work?+

  Henri Lehmann was born in Kiel, Germany, in 1814 and died in Paris in 1882. Lehmann's career coincided with a turbulent period in French history. The 1860s saw considerable political and military activity, including Prussia's defeat of Austria in the Seven Weeks' War (1866), the retreat of French troops from Mexico, and the evacuation of French troops from Rome (with a small volunteer garrison remaining to protect the Pope). In 1867, Napoléon III announced liberal reforms; however, the decade also included the execution of Emperor Maximilian in Mexico, and Giuseppe Garibaldi's march on the Papal States. French troops were dispatched to Italy to protect the Pope and defeated Garibaldi at Mentana. The period also saw relaxed censorship laws and a rise in journals critical of the regime. By 1870, France declared war on Prussia. The defeat at Sedan led to Napoléon III's surrender, the declaration of the Third Republic, and the siege of Paris. In 1871, Kaiser Wilhelm was crowned Emperor of Germany at Versailles, and France surrendered to Prussia. Adolphe Thiers became Chief of State of the Third Republic.
• Where can I see Henri Lehmann's work?+

  You can find Henri Lehmann's work in several museums. In the United States, these include the Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York), the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, and the J. Paul Getty Museum (Los Angeles). Other locations are the Cleveland Museum of Art, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Baltimore Museum of Art, the Saint Louis Art Museum, the Worcester Art Museum, and the Yale University Art Gallery (New Haven). Also try the Art Institute of Chicago, the Princeton University Art Museum, the Ackland Art Museum (University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill), the Harvard University Art Museums (Cambridge), the University of Michigan Museum of Art (Ann Arbor), and the University Art Museum (University of California, Santa Barbara). In Canada, see the Art Gallery of Ontario (Toronto) and the National Gallery of Canada (Ottawa). In the UK, try the Wallace Collection (London).
• Where was Henri Lehmann from?+

  Henri Lehmann was born in Kiel, Germany, in 1814. His father, Leo Lehmann, was a painter. The family converted from Judaism to Christianity. In 1831, Lehmann began his artistic training in Paris, France, at the École des Beaux-Arts. He studied under Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, a leading figure in French Neoclassical painting. Lehmann's early work shows Ingres's influence, with its emphasis on precise drawing and classical subjects. Lehmann spent most of his career in France. He became a prominent member of the Parisian art world. He exhibited regularly at the Salon and received numerous commissions for portraits and history paintings. He obtained French citizenship later in life. Although he was born in Germany, Lehmann is usually considered part of the French artistic tradition.
• Who did Henri Lehmann influence?+

  Henri Lehmann, a German-French painter of the 19th century, had a substantial impact on the artistic community, both through his own work and his teaching. Lehmann's academic style, honed under Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, influenced many students at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, where he became a professor in 1875. Among his notable pupils were Fernand Pelez, known for his social realist paintings; Georges Seurat, a major figure in the development of pointillism; and Henri Gervex, a painter of portraits and genre scenes. Lehmann instilled in his students a strong foundation in drawing and composition, principles evident in their later works, even as some diverged from his own more classical approach. Seurat, for example, retained a careful, structured approach to composition, although he applied it to new theories of colour and perception. Lehmann's emphasis on academic rigour, combined with an openness to different artistic directions, shaped the careers of a diverse group of artists in late 19th-century France.
• Who influenced Henri Lehmann?+

  Henri Lehmann, a 19th-century painter of German origin, studied under Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres. Lehmann entered Ingres's studio in Paris in 1831. Ingres's academic style had a strong effect on Lehmann's early work. Lehmann also had connections to other artists. He was a close friend of Théodore Chassériau, another Ingres student. Though Chassériau was younger, they shared ideas and supported each other's artistic development. Some scholars have noted similarities between Lehmann's and Chassériau's approaches to portraiture. Later in his career, Lehmann's style moved away from strict Ingres classicism. He explored a more romantic style, possibly influenced by the work of Eugène Delacroix. Lehmann's later paintings show a greater interest in colour and dramatic composition, elements that distinguish them from his earlier, more linear works done under Ingres's instruction. Lehmann's shift demonstrates an openness to new ideas, even while maintaining a foundation in academic training.
• Who was Henri Lehmann?+

  Henri Lehmann (1814-1882) was a German-French painter. Born in Kiel, he studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. There, he became a pupil of Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres. Lehmann's early work shows Ingres's Neoclassical influence, with a focus on precise drawing and idealised forms. Lehmann painted historical, religious, and mythological subjects, as well as portraits. His portrait sitters included Charles Gounod, Franz Liszt, and Alphonse de Lamartine. He received commissions for large-scale decorative programmes in Parisian public buildings. These included the Palais de Justice, the Hôtel de Ville, and the Église Sainte-Clotilde. Lehmann's career progressed during the July Monarchy and the Second Empire. He became a professor at the École des Beaux-Arts in 1875. Lehmann instructed a number of well-known artists, such as William-Adolphe Bouguereau. Lehmann's naturalisation as a French citizen occurred in 1858. His artistic production reflects academic painting styles of 19th-century France.