Albert von Keller

Albert von Keller (27 April 1844 – 14 July 1920) was a German painter of Swiss ancestry. He specialized in portraits and indoor scenes. Female figures are a prominent feature of his work.

For the American sociologist, see Albert Galloway Keller.
Albert von Keller (1904)

Biography

Keller was born in Gais, Switzerland.[1] He was one of eight children born to Caroline Keller, who was divorced at the time of his birth. As was customary, she had resumed the use of her maiden name. Her ex-husband's brother may have been his true father. When he was three, after several moves, the family settled in Bayreuth where he attended primary school and took piano lessons. In 1852, his mother became a citizen of Bavaria and, by extension, so did he. Sometime in mid-1854, they relocated to Munich and he was enrolled at the Maximiliansgymnasium. He graduated in 1863 and transferred to Ludwig Maximilian University to study law.

After 1865, he decided to pursue a career in art instead, but spent only a short time at the Academy of Fine Arts. He made numerous study trips throughout Germany, France, Italy and the Low Countries. From 1867 he worked at several different studios throughout Munich, including that of Arthur von Ramberg, where he drew nude studies. He had his first showing at the Glaspalast in 1869 and became a member of Allotria, an artists' association, in 1873.

In 1878, he married Irene von Eichthal (1858–1907), great-granddaughter of the Bavarian Court Banker, Aron Elias Seligmann, Freiherr von Eichthal. He would eventually paint over forty portraits of her. Their first son died as an infant. Their second son, Balthasar, was born in 1884, but died in 1906, shortly before his mother.

He exhibited at the Salon for the first time in 1883, while living in Paris. In 1886, he became a member of the new "Munich Psychological Society"; actually a group devoted to the paranormal, founded by Albert von Schrenck-Notzing. Soon he began representing parapsychological motifs, connected to Christian themes, with visions and hallucinations. In 1892, he was one of the co-founders of the Munich Secession and served as vice president from 1904 to 1920. He was also a board member of the Deutscher Künstlerbund. In 1898, he received the Knight's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Bavarian Crown, which entitled him to use the noble "von" in his name.[2]

He died on 14 July 1920 in Munich. He and his wife Irene are interred at the Alter Südfriedhof there.[3]

Selected paintings
  • Irene von Keller with her son Balthasar, 1888
    Irene von Keller with her son Balthasar, 1888
  • Portrait of Elisabeth von Wichmann
    Portrait of Elisabeth von Wichmann
  • The Pianist
    The Pianist
  • Chopin, 1873
    Chopin, 1873
  • The Sunday Walk, 1886
    The Sunday Walk, 1886

References
  1. Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Keller, Albert" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 15 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 718.
  2. Ausstellungskatalog X. Ausstellung der Münchener Sezession: Der Deutsche Künstlerbund (in Verbindung mit einer Ausstellung erlesener Erzeugnisse der Kunst im Handwerk), Verlagsanstalt F. Bruckmann, München 1904 (S. 24)
  3. Alter Südlicher Friedhof in München, Franz Schiermeier – Florian Scheungraber – Übersichtsplan der Grabmäler, ISBN 978-3-9811425-6-3

Further reading
  • Hans Rosenhagen: Albert von Keller, Künstlermonographie 104, Velhagen & Klasing, Leipzig 1912 (133 Abb.).
  • B. Rüttenauer: "Albert von Keller als Frauenmaler", in: Westermanns Monatshefte, #7, pgs.61–77, Leipzig 1913
  • "Albert von Keller als Malerpsychologe und Metaphysiker", in: Psychische Studien, 48. April/May 1921, pgs.193–208 with photos by Schrenck-Notzing
  • Oskar A. Müller: Albert von Keller 1844–1920. Das Ambiente eines Malers. Thiemig, München 1984, ISBN 3-485-04164-5.
  • Siegfried Weiß: Im Banne der Frauen – Albert von Keller (Ausst. Kunsthaus Kaufbeuren), in: Weltkunst, H. 10, 15. Mai 1997, S. 1053.
  • Kunsthaus Zürich (Hrsg.): Albert von Keller. Salons, Séancen, Secession. Texte von Gian Casper Bott, Beitrag von Nico Kirchberger. München 2009, ISBN 978-3-7774-9015-1.
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