|
Heidelberger, Ernst Johann [Arnost Jan]
(d Prague, before 1668). German sculptor, active in Bohemia. He worked principally in wood. Before 1618 he participated in the decoration of the Spanish Hall of Prague Castle; in 1630–32 he was employed by Albrecht, Graf von Wallenstein, both at his estate at Jicín and at his enormous palace in the Lesser Quarter of Prague. For the latter he carved an altar in the chapel. Its figures of angels and of St Wenceslas are elongated in proportion and have contrived, graceful gestures; these marionette-like carvings, the draperies of which are cut in sharp, protruding folds, probably represent the most extreme expression of sculptural Mannerism in Bohemia. A number of figures of Franciscan saints on the walls of St Mary of the Snows, Prague, were probably made in Heidelberger’s workshop, after 1620 for the church’s original high altar, and the best wood-carving made in Prague around 1630, the statue of St Francis of Paola in the Tyn church, also originated in his circle. It is a spiritually austere but deeply expressive work.
|
|
There are more than 45,000 articles in The Grove Dictionary of Art.
To access the rest of this article, including the bibliography, subscribe to
www.groveart.com.
To find out more about this subject, click on a related article below and
subscribe to www.groveart.com
|
