20/internal/media/dispatcher/13351/full"Character Head" No. 31964[Franz Xaver Messerschmidt]Franz Xaver MesserschmidtPlaster castSculpturehttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/4419/rdf/internal/media/dispatcher/163153/fullFranz Wessely1810[Peter Krafft]Peter KrafftOil on canvasThis picture exudes bourgeois pride, a pride in the (modest) wealth accumulated through hard work. We can clearly read the sitter’s name and date of birth on a panel: Franz Wessely was sixty-four when Krafft painted him in 1810. Otherwise we know nothing about him. Wessely must have been an unassuming person, although he did have his portrait painted. He wears simple attire: a gray jacket and waistcoat with a shirt made of obviously unbleached linen and a black necktie. Krafft concentrates on the face that is characterized by lucid, penetrating eyes. Wessely’s slightly flushed cheeks add the only accent of color in the painting. Paintinghttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/591/rdf/internal/media/dispatcher/140695/fullAllegory of a Prize Ceremony at the Vienna Academy under Wenzel Anton, Prince of Kaunitz-Rietbergc. 1790[Franz Anton Maulbertsch]Franz Anton MaulbertschOil on wood In his old age, Maulbertsch again reflected on the role of the Academy as a center of art. At the front of the pictorial stage we see a riotous array of mythological figures. Riding on a chariot, Chronos, the god of time, manages to overcome envy and pave the way for the personifications of the arts. Truth, in the form of a naked woman, awaits them with a prize in her hand. The passage of time thus brings the truth to light, and with it the best art. All this takes place symbolically within the context of the Academy, as indicated by the industrious students in the background and the medallion of Prince Wenzel Anton Kaunitz-Rietberg, protector of the Vienna Academy, in the top right-hand corner.Paintinghttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/3367/rdf/internal/media/dispatcher/65397/fullSenecac. 1780/1790[Anton Marschall]Anton MarschallWood, painted blackSculpturehttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/3988/rdf/internal/media/dispatcher/65360/full"Character Head" No. 271777/1783 (?)[Franz Xaver Messerschmidt]Franz Xaver MesserschmidtBrown-patinated alabasterSculpturehttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/4385/rdf/internal/media/dispatcher/65368/full"Character Head" No. 61777/1781[Franz Xaver Messerschmidt]Franz Xaver MesserschmidtAlabaster, mottled brownish stone Some of Franz Xaver Messerschmidt’s “Character Heads” appear realistic and evoke familiar emotions. Others are clearly distorted, even grotesquely contorted. The most radical case is this head: the lower part of the face has been shaped into something like a pointed beak. The work is made of alabaster, a gypsum stone similar to marble that can be carved with great precision and easily polished. It is still unclear what motivated Messerschmidt to create these objects, so unusual for their time. Their fascination, however, is beyond doubt. Artists have repeatedly found in them a source of inspiration for their own work.Sculpturehttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/4389/rdf/internal/media/dispatcher/65347/full"Character Head" No. 371777/1783[Franz Xaver Messerschmidt]Franz Xaver MesserschmidtLight-gray flecked alabasterSculpturehttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/8084/rdf/internal/media/dispatcher/10719/full"Character Head" No. 481777/1783[Franz Xaver Messerschmidt]Franz Xaver MesserschmidtLime wood under a layer of wax Among the known “Character Heads” by Franz Xaver Messerschmidt, this is the only one not made of metal or alabaster but carved in linden wood and finished with a wax coating. Messerschmidt was already esteemed by his contemporaries as a skilled woodcarver, likely owing to his training with his uncle, the Munich-based sculptor Johann Baptist Straub. This depiction of a smiling man was presumably a preparatory study for another piece rather than an independent work, though this remains unclear, as no comparable works are known and his working process is poorly understood.Sculpturehttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/8086/rdf/internal/media/dispatcher/65352/full"Character Head" No. 331777/1783[Franz Xaver Messerschmidt]Franz Xaver MesserschmidtTin alloy (79.9% tin, 18.8% lead) In this portrait bust, with the head is pressed against the chest, the eyes narrowed, the nose wrinkled, and the lips clenched, Franz Xaver Messerschmidt seems to seek an appropriate expression for intense inner states. It is one of three busts that the Viennese auction house Albert Kende acquired for the Belvedere in 1923 and 1927, thereby expanding the collection’s holdings of “Character Heads” cast in metal alloys. Messerschmidt primarily used tin and lead in varying proportions; here, for instance, 79.9 percent tin and 18.8 percent lead.Sculpturehttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/8242/rdf/internal/media/dispatcher/5817/fullVariation of "Character Head" No. 221777/1783[Franz Xaver Messerschmidt]Franz Xaver MesserschmidtLead alloy (58.5% lead, 40.4% tin)Sculpturehttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/8413/rdf/internal/media/dispatcher/65362/full"Character Head" No. 251771/1783[Franz Xaver Messerschmidt]Franz Xaver MesserschmidtAlabaster, grey white stone with brownish spots First published in 1793, "The Peculiar Life History of F. X. Messerschmidt", describes this bust as “Ein Erhängter” (A hanged man). Despite the rope around his neck, the figure depicted seems far from lifeless. Messerschmidt may be alluding to the controversial methods of his contemporary, Franz Anton Mesmer, a physician and healer who was personally acquainted with the sculptor. In Paris, Mesmer treated patients with “nervous disorders” using so-called baquets—wooden tubs filled with “magnetized water” from which iron rods and ropes protruded. Patients applied these to specific parts of the body to relieve their symptoms. Messerschmidt may have learned of such treatments in Pressburg/Bratislava through printed accounts.Sculpturehttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/4386/rdf/internal/media/dispatcher/65348/full"Character Head" No. 401771/1783[Franz Xaver Messerschmidt]Franz Xaver MesserschmidtWhite mottled alabasterSculpturehttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/8085/rdf/internal/media/dispatcher/65405/fullFranz Anton Mesmer1770[Franz Xaver Messerschmidt]Franz Xaver MesserschmidtMetal (cast lead?) Physician Franz Anton Mesmer, who was personally acquainted with Franz Xaver Messerschmidt, applied magnets to patients suffering from “nervous diseases.” They were thought to remove blockages and restore the flow of the vital life force. After moving to Paris in 1778, Mesmer started using a baquet for his group therapies. This was a wooden tub filled with “magnetized water” with protruding iron rods and ropes, as shown in the illustration. Patients placed these ropes and rods on particular parts of their bodies to alleviate symptoms. Messerschmidt may have found out about the baquet therapies from published reports while he was in Pressburg/Bratislava. It is possible that some Head Pieces reference Mesmer’s methods, which were controversial even in his day. One example is “Character Head” No. 25 with a rope depicted around the bust’s neck.Sculpturehttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/10738/rdf/internal/media/dispatcher/65403/fullGerard van Swieten1769[Franz Xaver Messerschmidt]Franz Xaver MesserschmidtTin-lead alloy, gildedSculpturehttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/8815/rdf/internal/media/dispatcher/79724/fullEmperor Francis I of Lorraine1765-1766[Franz Xaver Messerschmidt]Franz Xaver MesserschmidtTin cast (94.6% tin, 5.2% copper) The commission to create two statues of the imperial couple was probably the most important in Franz Xaver Messerschmidt’s career. Their presentation was widely reported in the press. Messerschmidt shows Maria Theresa as a young woman with Hungarian costume and the royal regalia, which he represented imaginatively rather than accurately. On her chest she wears a medallion with a portrait of her husband, Emperor Francis Stephen I, and the jewel of the Order of the Golden Fleece, otherwise reserved exclusively for men. The two statues were first transferred from the Hofburg to the Belvedere in 1773. Following several further moves, they have been permanently located at the Belvedere since 1921.Sculpturehttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/8040/rdf/internal/media/dispatcher/79717/fullMaria Theresa as Queen of Hungary1764/1766[Franz Xaver Messerschmidt]Franz Xaver MesserschmidtTin alloy (79.4% tin, 18.9% copper) The commission to create two statues of the imperial couple was probably the most important in Franz Xaver Messerschmidt’s career. Their presentation was widely reported in the press. Messerschmidt shows Maria Theresa as a young woman with Hungarian costume and the royal regalia, which he represented imaginatively rather than accurately. On her chest she wears a medallion with a portrait of her husband, Emperor Francis Stephen I, and the jewel of the Order of the Golden Fleece, otherwise reserved exclusively for men. The two statues were first transferred from the Hofburg to the Belvedere in 1773. Following several further moves, they have been permanently located at the Belvedere since 1921.Sculpturehttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/8039/rdf/internal/media/dispatcher/4592/fullGlorification of Emperor Joseph IIbefore 1777[Franz Anton Maulbertsch]Franz Anton MaulbertschOil on canvas What does the ideal emperor look like? Maulbertsch presented Emperor Joseph II as a benevolent Roman imperator. Although still exuding Baroque opulence, ideas from the Enlightenment are conveyed in the subject matter. The emperor’s motto—“Virtute et Exemplo” (By Virtue and Example)—is emblazoned on the medallion in the background. And the commander is presented as a man of the people, guiding personifications of light and abundance to the poverty-stricken mother and child. The foreground scene refers to a specific event in Slavíkovice near Brno when the emperor himself is said to have steered the plow. Paintinghttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/8278/rdf/internal/media/dispatcher/6818/fullField Marshal Joseph Wenzel, Prince Liechtenstein1757/1758[Balthasar Ferdinand Moll]Balthasar Ferdinand MollBronze, chased and fire gildedDiese Büste des Feldmarschalls Joseph Wenzel Fürst Liechtenstein (1696–1772) war Teil eines Monumentes, das Maria Theresia nach dem Sieg bei Kolin (1757) im "Kaisersaal" des k. k. Zeughauses errichten ließ. Auch wenn Liechtenstein bei besagter Schlacht nicht persönlich zugegen war, so hatte er doch maßgeblichen Anteil an dem Sieg, da er sich intensiv mit der Verbesserung des Artilleriewesens beschäftigte. Assistent Molls an der Ausführung dieser Plastik war der damals noch junge Johann Georg Dorfmeister. Aus Dankbarkeit ließ Liechtenstein zwei Büsten des Kaiserpaares von Franz Xaver Messerschmidt (Belvedere, Inv.-Nr. 4211 und 4241) anfertigen, die im selben Saal aufgestellt wurden. — Es haben sich mehrere Darstellungen dieses Fürsten Liechtenstein erhalten, darunter Gemälde von Hyacinthe Rigaud (Sammlungen der Fürsten von und zu Liechtenstein) sowie Peter van Roy (Budapest, Szépmüveszéti Múzeum), die ihn in sehr selbstbewusster, unmittelbarer Pose zeigen. Hier jedoch ist er in die Ferne blickend als visionärer Militär zu sehen. — [Georg Lechner, 8/2010]Sculpturehttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/3039/rdf/internal/media/dispatcher/5270/fullFrancis I Stephenc. 1760[Franz Xaver Messerschmidt]Franz Xaver MesserschmidtBronze, gildedAt the very start of his career, Franz Xaver Messerschmidt was awarded a prestigious job: Prince Joseph Wenzel I. of Liechtenstein entrusted a commission for busts of the imperial couple to the up-and-coming sculptor. This was to show his gratitude to Maria Theresa after she had commissioned a bust of the prince from sculptor Balthasar Ferdinand Moll as a tribute to Liechtenstein’s services as a field marshal. Messerschmidt’s bronze portraits of the monarch and her consort, Francis Stephen I, appear both dignified and full of life. They were placed on display, together with Moll’s bust of the prince, in the Emperor’s Hall of the Imperial-Royal Armory, as historical watercolors document. These stores for the imperial weapons’ collection in the center of Vienna were demolished in the 1860s.Sculpturehttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/3005/rdf/internal/media/dispatcher/5278/fullMaria Theresac. 1760[Franz Xaver Messerschmidt]Franz Xaver MesserschmidtBronze, gildedAt the very start of his career, Franz Xaver Messerschmidt was awarded a prestigious job: Prince Joseph Wenzel I. of Liechtenstein entrusted a commission for busts of the imperial couple to the up-and-coming sculptor. This was to show his gratitude to Maria Theresa after she had commissioned a bust of the prince from sculptor Balthasar Ferdinand Moll as a tribute to Liechtenstein’s services as a field marshal. Messerschmidt’s bronze portraits of the monarch and her consort, Francis Stephen I, appear both dignified and full of life. They were placed on display, together with Moll’s bust of the prince, in the Emperor’s Hall of the Imperial-Royal Armory, as historical watercolors document. These stores for the imperial weapons’ collection in the center of Vienna were demolished in the 1860s.Sculpturehttps://sammlungtest.belvedere.at/objects/3035/rdf