Continental European after 1800 36 Can you give us any information on the life and work of Johanne von Pritzelwitz?

Girl with a Lace Shawl
Topic: Artist

I think this German female artist should be recorded as Johanna (or Johanne) von Pritzelwitz. From various sources on the internet, I think her dates might be 1837–1910.

There is some information here, although there's no free access to unredacted versions.
https://bit.ly/3iLLHRB
https://bit.ly/3USOfLr
https://bit.ly/3UEY9A7
https://bit.ly/3VEv2y8

Andrew Shore, Entry reviewed by Art UK

36 comments

Martin Hopkinson,

It would be worth looking in the multivolume De Gruyter, Kunstlerlexikon

Martin Hopkinson,

possibly from the same family as Kurt von Pritzelwitz 1854-1935 of Berlin
worth checking the Almanach de Gotha
as in the next generation there was a Prussian infantry general Kurt Karl Wilhelm KG 1854 - 1935
Are there any links between the Earls of Fife and Prussian nobility?

Jacinto Regalado,

The sitter seems to be wearing some sort of regional costume, although it may or may not be German.

Jacinto Regalado,

She seems to have painted primarily if not exclusively female portraits, with an emphasis on the sitter's dress or costume.

Kieran Owens,

If this is the same person, she was daughter of the military officer Carl Heinrich Friedrich Ernst Joachim Von Pritzelwitz (1794-1870) and his third wife, Franziska Jeanette von Winterfeldt (1813-1888).

This lady was born in the "Military Community" (Militärgemeinde) in Düsseldorf as Luise Franziske Henriette Theodore Johanne Von Pritzelwitz on the 23rd March 1837. She died in Berlin on the 3rd December 1910 and was buried on the 6th in the Invalids' Cemetery (Invalidenfriedhof), one of the oldest cemeteries in Berlin and the traditional resting place of the Prussian Army

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karl_von_Pritzelwitz

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invalids'_Cemetery

https://geneee.org/karl/von+pritzelwitz?lang=en

https://geneee.org/johanna+henriette+theodora+franziska/von+pritzelwitz?lang=en

Again, if it is the correct person, this is a link to her will:

https://www.deutsche-digitale-bibliothek.de/item/RZ2ZPLPLS5SJTDC7A5KBOUWO6APYQTVN

Regarding the artist herself, with a Berlin address at Wilhelmstrasse, 72, Johanna von Pritzelwitz exhibited three works at the 1881 exhibition at Berlin's Königlichen Akademie der Künste (Royal Academy of Art):

600. Damenportrait
601. Magdalena
602. Orientalin

https://bit.ly/3P4N36h

This discussion's work could be the painting entitled "A Bavarian Girl" (no. 264) by "Madame von Pritzelwitz" which was shown in London at the Society of Lady Artists exhibition at the Great Marlborough Street gallery in March of 1885:

https://bit.ly/3uwTuW5

Anyone with access to Charles Baile de Laperriere's "The Society of Women Artists Exhibitors 1855-1996: S-Z (Society of Women Artists, 1996) might kindly check to see if there are any other entries for the artist therein.

In 1886, again as Johanna von Pritzelwitz, at an exhibition at Berlin's Royal Academy of Art, and from her address of Wilhelmstrasse, 72, she exhibited catalogue entry no. 914, "Westfälische Dorfbraut" ("Westphalian Village Bride").

If there are any numbers on the back of this painting they might correspond with one or more of those above.

In 1898, her address in Berlin was given as Genthinerstr. 11:

https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_NFw1AAAAMAAJ/page/n211/mode/2up?q=Pritzelwitz

Between 1884 and 1890, at least, she apparently was a member of the Association of Berlin Female Artists (Verein der Berliner Künstlerinnen):

http://www.adk.de/en/archives/projects/indexing.htm?we_objectID=59517

The one caveat about identifying the person above with this painting's creator is that the mention of her on the website for Karl von Pritzelwitz says that his daughter was a "Stiftsdame in Lindow" or "cannoness / Kanonissin in Lindow (in Brandenburg)"

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kanonissin

Could the painter have become a nun or visa versa?

Kieran Owens,

At the International Exhibition in Glasgow in 1888, as catalogue no. 923, a work entitled "Dutch Woman (German School)" was exhibited by "Mlle. J. von Pritzelwitz".

https://archive.org/details/gri_33125007430776/page/n65/mode/2up?q=923

This painting could well be the same as the one under discussion, especially when one considers the similarity of the traditional Dutch headdress in the painting linked to here:

https://fineartamerica.com/featured/-a-dutch-girl-in-traditional-costume-mary-evans-picture-library.html

As above, if the number 923 appears on the back of the frame, that might clinch the matter.

Jacinto Regalado,

It would appear that the name should be Johanna von Pritzelwitz.

Kieran Owens,

By the way, is the work signed and dated, to what appears, from the ArtUK information panel, to be 1880? If so, can an image of those details be posted, possibly along with one of the back of the painting?

Jacinto Regalado,

I agree that our sitter could be Dutch, which may be more likely than her being German, although I am no expert on regional costumes.

Kieran Owens,

In the 1887 edition of the the Berliner Adreßbuch (Berlin Addressbook) there is a listing for Fräulein J. von Pritzelwitz, a "Stiftsdame" (perhaps this word has another meaning than a "Canoness"), who was living at the above-referenced address of Wilhelmstrasse, 72. Also living at this address was a Fräu F. von Pritzelwitz, born von Winterfeldt, the widow of a "Hofmarschall (See attachment).

This listing confirms, I firmly believe, that this discussion's artist, Johanna von Pritzelwitz is the same person referenced above in my earlier post as having been born in 1837 and died in 1910.

In the 1910 edition of the Berliner Adreßbuch (Berlin Addressbook) there is a listing for Fraulein Johanna von Pritzelwitz, a lady of honour (Ehrenstiftsdame), living at Magdeburger Strasse, 35:

https://digital.zlb.de/viewer/image/34115495_1910/2190/LOG_0137/

Kieran Owens,

Also, by way of confirmation, the artist's father, Karl von Pritzelwitz was a Prussian lieutenant colonel and, from 1821 to 1848, was "Hofmarschall" in the court of Prince Friedrich of Prussia and his wife, Princess Luise von Anhalt-Bernburg, in Düsseldorf, where he was the administrative official in charge of supervising all its economic affairs.

Kieran Owens,

Additional details from the Berliner Adreßbuch (Berlin Addressbook) show that Carl von Pritzelwitz was living at Wilhelmstrasse, 72, in Berlin, as "Hofmarschall", from as early as 1867 and is listed there until his death in 1870. The prominence of his listing shows that he held a very senior rank at court.

The attached photograph of him was taken on the 10th March 1868, when he was 74 years old.

Also, while not actually a nun, as a "Stiftsdame" and subsequently an "Ehrenstiftsdame" the artist could be described as "an unmarried noble lady of the noble monastery of Lindow in the district of Ruppin". Further research into exactly what was her status and what was the relationship between ladies of the German nobility and the Lindow monastery might be worthwhile.

Details of the artist's grandfather, Karl Ludwig Heinrich Gottlob von Pritzelwitz (1768-1839) can be seen here:

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karl_Ludwig_von_Pritzelwitz_{LPARENTHESES} Generalmajor,_1768)

Kieran Owens,

On the website for the Wladimir Aichelburg archive's "150 years of the Künstlerhaus Vienna 1861-2011" an entry book, inside marked as an auxiliary book, begins with works of art that arrived on December 14, 1886. In 1887, the following appeared:

711 - Pritzelwitz Johanna in Berlin: oil painting. study head. 900 marks. Arrived 14.3.1887. Rejected 6/21/1887. April 18, 1887 to the artist.

712 Pritzelwitz Johanna in Berlin: oil painting. study head. 750 marks. Arrived 14.3.1887. Rejected 6/21/1887. April 18, 1887 to the artist.



Marcie Doran,

Ancestry shows that she is listed in a publication from 1985 - "Dictionary of Women Artists" by Chris Petteys.

***

She exhibited at the Walker Art Gallery in 1882 according to a book that was published in 1884 “The Year’s Art”.

https://www.google.ca/books/edition/The_Year_s_art_compiled_by_M_B_Huish_and/MVAEAAAAQAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0

***

Her work "I Beseech Thee!" is included on page 942 of this art reference catalogue from 1902.

https://books.google.ca/books/about/Complete_Art_Reference_Catalogue.html?id=Jh4hAQAAMAAJ&redir_esc=y

The Head Housekeeper at Mar Lodge has kindly provided the attached image of the picture in its frame. I had heard that it wouldn't be possible to photograph the back until the Curator visits at some future date, but this shows it resting on a carpet, so I've asked again for a clear image of the reverse (unless this was an old photograph).

It is not original to Mar Lodge but was a gift in 1998.

1 attachment
Jacob Simon,

Kieran asks if the work is signed and dated (07/12/2022). I don't know about dated but it is signed top left (download the ArtUK image and enlarge).

The frame in the latest image (15/03/2023) does not look original.

The picture was a bequest in 1998. Would the name of the bequeather be useful if we are trying to discover a provenance trail?

Jacob Simon,

I don't understand what has happened to the attachment. I will try again.

1 attachment
Jacob Simon,

No, still the wrong image. Very puzzling. Please revert to downloading the ArtUK database image and enlarging.

Jacob Simon,

On reflection I think that there was already a file on the Art Detective server with the same name as mine and that the server uploaded this file to the discussion rather than mine!

To test this out, I have renamed my file and reattach it.

1 attachment
Kieran Owens,

The attachment is still not the signature image.

Kieran Owens,

As mentioned above, and given Marion's posting of the date, this discussion's work could be the painting entitled "A Bavarian Girl" (no. 264) by "Madame von Pritzelwitz" which was shown in London at the Society of Lady Artists exhibition at the Great Marlborough Street gallery in March of 1885:

https://bit.ly/3uwTuW5

If there was a label with 264 on it on the reverse of the frame, that would confirm this suggestion.

A photograph of the reverse is attached. The collection has confirmed that the accession number is 98.167. The bottom label refers to another bequest (a painting of a horse) from the same source: Diana Walker.

1 attachment
Marcie Doran,

The Scotlandspeople website shows that a woman named Diana Walker, whose mother’s maiden name was Gates, passed away in Edinburgh in 1997 at the age of 77.

Marcie Doran,

Noel Stapylton Walker left most of his estate to his daughter Diana Walker. His will did not mention any works of art. For the record, I’ve attached the grant. It shows that Diana’s address matches the address on the back of the painting.

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