Jonas Zeuner (Kassel 1727-1814 Amsterdam)
View of Montalbano from the Ridderbrug, Amsterdam, between 1770-1814
Signed lower right Zeuner fec.
Verre eglomise
40 x 50.5 cm
7184
Further images
Provenance
Formerly the property of David Stevenson (1815-1886) MICE, FRSE, FRSSA, civil engineer and lighthouse designer, Uncle of Robert Louis StevensonLiterature
This picture is described and illustrated in the book 'Scientific Charles Recalls a Poetic Stevenson', (see p.98) by Charles Stevenson, son of David Stevenson and first cousin of Robert Louis Stevenson, circa 1870 (the book posthumously published in 2023).
The painting shows a view of an Amsterdam canal scene from the Ridderbrug across the Oude looking to the north east overlooking the Kikkerbilsluis, the Gravenhekje to the right and...
The painting shows a view of an Amsterdam canal scene from the Ridderbrug across the Oude looking to the north east overlooking the Kikkerbilsluis, the Gravenhekje to the right and the Montelbaans Toren to the left, with various figures visible on the street, jetty and in the boats. The composition is based on a print by Simon Fokke dating from between 1760 and 1783 after a drawing by Jan de Beijer titled The Old Schans and Mont-Alban Tower, in Amsterdam / The Old Schans & the Mont-Alban Tower, in Amsterdam (see Rijksmuseum object no.RP-P-1921-301 - https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/nl/collectie/object/RP-P-1921-301--822ddda3d5a96d8eab24160f8fd0f732).
Other versions of this scene by Zeuner are illustrated in J. Sprenkels-ten Horn, A. Sprenkels 'Jonas Zeuner 1727-1814 'Zjn wereld weerspiegeld in zilver en goud' Uitgeverij Uniepers Abcoude pl. 20 and pl. 47.
Rudy Eswarin makes some interesting observations on Zeuner’s method of working and selling his pictures. It seems likely that such pictures were commissioned for a specific client or produced for a dealer because, as Eswarin points out ‘The special relationship between the engraver of gold leaf and the supplier of the metal is obvious. In his own best interest, the dealer would have acted as a contact point representing his client, the artist. Since the financial outlay required to obtain the materials was probably substantial, a credit facility might have further strengthened the bond….The possibility that Zeuner produced speculative work and had it on display for sale in a shop, must be discounted… The subjects of Zeuner’s better engravings are too specific to be a random choice with an eye to popular appeal. Some pictures were occasionally duplicated, presumably by desire of another client, and minor changes were always made. It must be remembered that each engraving was individually produced from the start, making the exact duplication impossible. This could have provided Zeuner with a strong sales point by adding uniqueness to the impressive visual qualities of the rich materials.’ (‘A Group of Portraits by Zeuner’ Journal of Glass Studies, vol. 19, 1977, pp. 127–33.)
Jonas Zeuner (Kassel 1727-1814 Amsterdam) began his professional career in Germany in the military and in connection with his marriage in 1750, when he settled in Amsterdam, was given the profession of gunner. There is no information about his training as a reverse glass painter. He is the most well-known reverse glass painter from the period. His first recorded works date from 1770 onwards. Countering the colourful and florid baroque and rococo styles, his gold and silver leaf etchings on glass became highly valued in Dutch society. He worked in Amsterdam until his death in 1814 although he is known to have stayed in London some time between 1800 and 1810, where he took part in the 1778 exhibition of the Society of Artists and produced a number of English landscapes using the verre églomisé technique. A catalog raisonné of Jonas Zeuner was published in 1994 (Sprenkels-Ten Horn, J. (1994). Jonas Zeuner 1727–1814: zijn wereld weerspiegeld in zilver en goud. Abcoude: Uniepers). He also created works based on engravings by Jan de Beyer (1703-c. 1780), Simon Fokke (1712-1784), and Wiebrand Hendriks 1744-1831. A total of around 190 reverse glass paintings (rear glass etchings in gold and silver leaf) by him are known and examples of his works can be found in the Centraal Museum, Utrecht, the Corning Museum of Glass and the Rijksmuseum. A pair of works by Zeuner depicting two scenes in Utrecht – a view of the Maliebaan and a view of the Maliebrug with the house 'Bellevue' (each 33.2 x 42.3 cm) sold at Christie’s in New York, 25 January 2023 for $163,800 (lot 64).
Verre églomisé is a technique where gold and silver leaf is applied to glass using a gelatine adhesive and a design is etched using a fine needle. To protect the design, a layer of pigment is applied over the metal leaf, often using oil paint for the sky. The image is then viewed from the reverse and creates a mirrored effect.
On Zeuner’s use of the technique and the inherent difficulties it presents, Eswarin explains: ‘In common with reverse painting on glass, no corrections can be made on the engraving, and the gold leaf is somewhat more tricky to handle. The opaque properties of the material do not permit the use of a pattern laid under the glass, and the drawing must be almost imperceptibly traced or transferred by other means onto the work area. The lines are then impressed or cut into the metal with the sharp point of a needle fastened in a holder…After work on the foil is completed, the back of the panel is covered with paint or coloured lacquer for contrast and protection. This coating is seen behind the linework of the engraving, and the effect is not unlike that of a print on a gold background.’ (Rudy Eswarin, ‘A Group of Portraits by Zeuner’ Journal of Glass Studies, vol. 19, 1977, p. 130).
‘To transfer the drawing onto the work surface and simultaneously achieve the required size changes, Zeuner most likely used the camera obscura…Drawing directly on the metal duplicates the print position on the back, and when the engraving is finished and viewed from the other (face) side, the image appears with left and right reversed.’ (ibid, p. 133).
Other versions of this scene by Zeuner are illustrated in J. Sprenkels-ten Horn, A. Sprenkels 'Jonas Zeuner 1727-1814 'Zjn wereld weerspiegeld in zilver en goud' Uitgeverij Uniepers Abcoude pl. 20 and pl. 47.
Rudy Eswarin makes some interesting observations on Zeuner’s method of working and selling his pictures. It seems likely that such pictures were commissioned for a specific client or produced for a dealer because, as Eswarin points out ‘The special relationship between the engraver of gold leaf and the supplier of the metal is obvious. In his own best interest, the dealer would have acted as a contact point representing his client, the artist. Since the financial outlay required to obtain the materials was probably substantial, a credit facility might have further strengthened the bond….The possibility that Zeuner produced speculative work and had it on display for sale in a shop, must be discounted… The subjects of Zeuner’s better engravings are too specific to be a random choice with an eye to popular appeal. Some pictures were occasionally duplicated, presumably by desire of another client, and minor changes were always made. It must be remembered that each engraving was individually produced from the start, making the exact duplication impossible. This could have provided Zeuner with a strong sales point by adding uniqueness to the impressive visual qualities of the rich materials.’ (‘A Group of Portraits by Zeuner’ Journal of Glass Studies, vol. 19, 1977, pp. 127–33.)
Jonas Zeuner (Kassel 1727-1814 Amsterdam) began his professional career in Germany in the military and in connection with his marriage in 1750, when he settled in Amsterdam, was given the profession of gunner. There is no information about his training as a reverse glass painter. He is the most well-known reverse glass painter from the period. His first recorded works date from 1770 onwards. Countering the colourful and florid baroque and rococo styles, his gold and silver leaf etchings on glass became highly valued in Dutch society. He worked in Amsterdam until his death in 1814 although he is known to have stayed in London some time between 1800 and 1810, where he took part in the 1778 exhibition of the Society of Artists and produced a number of English landscapes using the verre églomisé technique. A catalog raisonné of Jonas Zeuner was published in 1994 (Sprenkels-Ten Horn, J. (1994). Jonas Zeuner 1727–1814: zijn wereld weerspiegeld in zilver en goud. Abcoude: Uniepers). He also created works based on engravings by Jan de Beyer (1703-c. 1780), Simon Fokke (1712-1784), and Wiebrand Hendriks 1744-1831. A total of around 190 reverse glass paintings (rear glass etchings in gold and silver leaf) by him are known and examples of his works can be found in the Centraal Museum, Utrecht, the Corning Museum of Glass and the Rijksmuseum. A pair of works by Zeuner depicting two scenes in Utrecht – a view of the Maliebaan and a view of the Maliebrug with the house 'Bellevue' (each 33.2 x 42.3 cm) sold at Christie’s in New York, 25 January 2023 for $163,800 (lot 64).
Verre églomisé is a technique where gold and silver leaf is applied to glass using a gelatine adhesive and a design is etched using a fine needle. To protect the design, a layer of pigment is applied over the metal leaf, often using oil paint for the sky. The image is then viewed from the reverse and creates a mirrored effect.
On Zeuner’s use of the technique and the inherent difficulties it presents, Eswarin explains: ‘In common with reverse painting on glass, no corrections can be made on the engraving, and the gold leaf is somewhat more tricky to handle. The opaque properties of the material do not permit the use of a pattern laid under the glass, and the drawing must be almost imperceptibly traced or transferred by other means onto the work area. The lines are then impressed or cut into the metal with the sharp point of a needle fastened in a holder…After work on the foil is completed, the back of the panel is covered with paint or coloured lacquer for contrast and protection. This coating is seen behind the linework of the engraving, and the effect is not unlike that of a print on a gold background.’ (Rudy Eswarin, ‘A Group of Portraits by Zeuner’ Journal of Glass Studies, vol. 19, 1977, p. 130).
‘To transfer the drawing onto the work surface and simultaneously achieve the required size changes, Zeuner most likely used the camera obscura…Drawing directly on the metal duplicates the print position on the back, and when the engraving is finished and viewed from the other (face) side, the image appears with left and right reversed.’ (ibid, p. 133).
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