Originalveröffentlichung in: Bulletin of the National Gallery in Prague, 7-8 (1997-1998), S. 54-66 MICHAEL WILLMANN'S WAY TO "THE HEIGHTS OF ART" AND HIS EARLY DRAWINGS ANDRZEJ KOZIEL In his letter to Heinrich Snopek, the abbot of ing J having adopted the methods of Jacob Backer Cistercian monastery in Sedlec, Michael Willmann and also of Rembrandt and others", took up "very recommended to the abbot his former pupil and strict excercises" and carried them on diligently stepson Johann Christoph Liska as a guarantor of "days and nights".- a possible continuation of his work on the painting Unfortunately, among the extant drawings of The Martyrdom of the Cistercian and Carthusian Willmann, there are no works which can be un­ Monks in Sedlec in 1421 in the following words: "...er questionably recognised as made in the period of schon in seinem hesten Alter unci in flatten mehreres learning and journeys of the artist.' Thus we do not gesehen oder hegriffen alji ich in Hollandt thun ken- possess direct sources that will enable us to say nen. Er ist auch in Imentirung der HiJMorien sehr something more about the self-teaching of geistrich in der Ordinanzen die Bilder mil in und Willmann. However, I believe that the set of twenty durcheinander lebhaffl auch gluhenden Colleritten engravings by Josef Gregory after the drawings of Summit wafi einem rechten Kunstmahler nettig er in "des beruhmten Meister Willmann", made in a Hem gutte wissenschaft (dutch die gnad Gottes) he­ 1794-95 and published in Prague in 1805, informs griffen hat.".' Liska acquired the complete knowl­ us in an indirect way about the character of the edge of these principles of art education, which are youthful exercises of the artist.1 So far only one essential for the "right" painter - he could inge­ work from the copied drawings of Willmann has niously "invent" a visual equivalent for a literary been found - the scene Unfaithful Thomas before "story", moreover, he could wholly "arrange" both Christ [Fig. 1, 2].s Comparing this drawing with the composition and colours of painting. The journey engraving made after it reveals extreme verity of the to Italy was crucial for obtaining these skills - the Gregory's work towards the prototype - the en­ pupil could there "see or learn" more than his teach­ graving accurately renders the strokes of the artist, er could have done in Holland. Of course, we differentiated in breadth and by technique of exe­ should read this opinion of stepfather about his cution (pen, pencil). It allows us to validate our stepson with an appropriate circumspection - its opinions about the lost drawings of Willmann for­ mercantile character is obvious - but we can agree mulated only on the ground of the set of with its general significance: the recommended Gregory's engravings. competency of Liska was the result of such an art The sketchy character of the drawings - their education, which Willmann could not have ob­ freshness which gives illusion that we deal with tained. Indeed, in the biography of Willmann pub­ specimens of the immediate records of ideas born lished in the Latin edition of Joachim von in the artist's mind - and the virtuosity of the Sandrart's Teutsche Academic.. - the biography artist's stroke made Willmann's researchers regard most likely based on the information sent to these works as the best drawings of the artist. Sandrart by Willmann himself - we can find a no­ Ernst Kloss emphasised the characteristic fury but tion, that although Willmann came to Amsterdam also the unusual intuition of Willmann's strokes "to gain more mastery of art", due to the shortage of who had rendered "the plenitude of conceptions" (die money he not only could not afford lessons "at Fiille der Einfdlle) by drawing." The lack of connec­ a very famous master", but also - forced "to earn liv­ tion with the paintings" inclined to judge this set as ing by his own work" - he was not able to leave for a group of autonomous works of Willmann, the Italy. Therefore Willmann's way to the "heights of drawings, which were not preliminary studies but art" was by necessity different - the role of art possessed - according to Jaromir Neumann's ex­ teacher had to be fulfilled by art itself and "nothing pression - "the importance of 'the drawn mono­ but talent and nature given hint by God" became the logue'" [povahu "kreslenych monologii"] of the guarantors of the artist's success. Thus during his artist." Such an independent character of the works stay in Holland and later, while travelling in but also their form built by vigorous strokes and Germany and Poland. Willmann tried "to see all fa­ sharp hachuring and narration of scenes full of "the mous masterpieces" including renowned emper­ psychological tension of action" [psychologicke napeti or's gallery in Prague where "he learned especially deje] and "dramatic arrangements" [dramaticke stfet- much". For the money he would have had to pay nuti] differentiated in the eyes of researchers this a teacher he bought in Amsterdam a collection of set from other drawings of Willmann.'' An explana­ "prototypes", most likely copperplate engravings. tion of this phenomenon was sought, in accordance The artist, "already excellently experienced in draw­ with the conception of "influence", by indicating 54 / BULLETIN OF THE NATIONAL GALLERY IN PRAGUE F4f- /a M. L. Willmann, Unfaithful Thomas before Christ. Prague, Graphic Art r Collection, Strahov ri'^K. r. 30 Monastery, Museum o f Czech si Literature. Photo: National V Gallery in Prague. m •M ft tr, 0 U Z V, C" ^MhM ,'ar \ijL M M •JJ possible sources of the artist's inspiration. Fig, lh M. L. Willmann. Unfaithful Thomas before J. Neumann pointed out the influence of the work '01 Christ (verso). Prague, and attitude of Rembrandt - esspecially the draw­ Graphic Art Collection, ings from 1640s - therefore he dated the Strahov Monastery, Museum Willmann's drawings at the early, "rem- of Czech Literature. Photo: brandtesque" period of the artist's career.10 This i fcS National Gallery in Prague. supposition was questioned by Volker Manuth who emphasized cursoriness of the Willmann's depen­ dence on Rembrandt and doubted its exclusivity. - AT * " The German researcher pointed out some analogies to the Amsterdam drawings of Juriaen Ovens and Govaert Flinck, he also noticed Flamish borrow­ I. tr. i)M ings (e. g. a canon of human shape) in Willmann's drawings, which finally inclined him to state that Willmann merged in his works "influences of engravings of the circle of Rubens and the circle of Rembrandt"'." Hardly explicable differences be­ tween works etched by Gregory and other drawings of Willmann gave rise to the more serious thought: if the works different from others by form and char­ acter, considered to be the best ones of the artist, Fig. 2 J. Gregory after M. L. Willmann, Unfaithful Thomas before Christ. National are lost now, and we owe our knowledge about Gallery in Prague. Photo: National Gallery in Prague. them to the accidental and, most likely, fragmen­ tary records of Gregory, is it possible to judge the activity of Willmann as a draughtsman at all? All these misunderstandings, leading to such pes­ simistic statements, originated from the fact that •sC M different form of the works from Gregory's set re­ fee a*, sulted from other than it had been thought function m of the drawings. These works are, as I want to ar­ gue, the records of individual excercises of Willmann, which - corresponding to teaching methods used in the Rembrandt's workshop - were based, however, on the artist's individual work with the collection of "prototypes" Willmann had bought in Amsterdam. In the case of thirteen draw­ W ings we can indicate definite graphic models Wiilmann took as a basis for his drawing excercises; the similar formal character of other works etched 3 BULLETIN OF THE NATIONAL GALLERY IN PRAGUE / 55 by Gregory lets me believe, that their function was the same. m mta I would like to begin their survey with a presen­ mm tation of those drawings, which are the records of a 1 the most elementary excercise - a study of an indi­ immi vidual human figure and a group of few figures (ti­ tles of drawings after J. Neumann): L rl m • Figural Studies with Melchisedech [Figurdlni studie s postavou Melchisedecha] [Fig. 3] - the fig­ ure of Melchisedech is based on the priest of Zeus temple adopted from the engraving 5/. Paul and S J. Gregory after M. L. WiUmann, Figural Studies St. Barnaba Refusing the Sacrifices Offered Them in with Melchisedech. National Gallery in Prague. the City of Lystra by Jan Saenredam after Karel van Photo: National Gallery in Prague. Mander [Fig. 4]," the other four figures: the walk­ ing man and three men at the door opening, com­ posed as one group, are copied from the work of Marcantonio Raimondi after Baccio Bandinelli The Martyrdom of St. Lawrence [Fig. 5];14 • The Holy Family with young St. John the Baptist [Sv. Rodina s malym Janem KHitelem] [Fig. 6] - this scene was drawn after the central group of figures from the engraving Rest on the Ak. Flight into Egypt etched by Martino Rota after Titian [Fig. 7]." m >- rMk 4 Saenredam after Karel van Mander, St. Paul and St. Barnaba Refusing the Sacrifices Offered Them in the City of Lystra (after The Illustrated Bartsch...). mL^ Fig. 6 J. Gregory after M. L. WiUmann, The Holy Family with young St. John the Baptist. National Gallery in Prague. Photo: National Gallery in Prague. V5. ,1 •1 fei Fig. 5 Marcantonio Raimondi after Baccio Bandinelli, The Martyrdom of St.