Double statue of the princesses Luise and Friederike of Prussia

Johann Gottfried Schadow1795 - 1797

Alte Nationalgalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
Berlin, Germany

The double statue of Crown Princess Luise and Princess Friederike of Prussia marks a highpoint in European Classicism. For the first time, two female figures were portrayed life-size as a double statue, that is to say, individuals were being depicted who had no claims on posterity by virtue of their achievements as rulers or as military figures. Luise looks into the distance with patient resolve, viewing her future duties as queen. Friederike leans against her older sister’s side. Dreamingly thoughtful yet coquettish, she takes her sister’s hand resting on her shoulders in a gently sensitive gesture. The closeness of the two sisters and the contrast of their characters and destinies resonate equally in this graceful work.

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Details

Title: Double statue of the princesses Luise and Friederike of Prussia
Creator: Johann Gottfried Schadow
Date Created: 1795 - 1797
Physical Dimensions: w102.0 x h172.0 x d61,5 cm
Type: Sculpture
Technique and material: Marble
Inv.-No.: B II 34
ISIL-No.: DE-MUS-815114
External link: Alte Nationalgalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
Copyrights: Text: © Prestel Verlag / Alte Nationalgalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Photo: © b p k - Photo Agency / Alte Nationalgalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Andres Kilger
Collection: Nationalgalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
Artist biography: Johann Gottfried Schadow is known as the most important German Neoclassicist sculptor. Due to his humble beginnings, he started his apprenticeship with Tassaert, a rather mediocre sculptor. For three years he studied in Rome where he markedly found his style. In 1788 he returned to Berlin and succeeded his master as sculptor to the court. Schadow created a variety of church monuments and memorial works but also worked as a porcelain painter at the royal porcelain factory. In 1795 he moulded the quadriga of the Brandenburg Gate and the allegorical frieze on the facade of the royal mint in Berlin. Schadow was appointed as director of the Berlin Academy and had great influence on Prussian arts, for instance, through his writings on the proportions of the human figure or on national physiognomy. Schadow’s art was distinctly Neoclassicist and naturalistic in character but his work also displayed a Romantic element. Busts of Frederick the Great in Stettin (Szczecin), Blücher in Rostock and Luther in Wittenberg are some of his most prominent works.
Artist Place of Death: Berlin, Germany
Artist Place of Birth: Berlin, Germany
Artist Dates: 1764-05-20/1850-01-27