Lawrence Alma-Tadema - Biography Of An Artist In The Antique Style

Born Lourens Tadema (Alma being his middle name) incatalogues!Soon after marriage, the Tademas moved
Dronryp, Friesland, to Pieter Tadema, a notary, and hisfrom a rented home in Camden Square to
second wife Hinke Brouwer - from an early ageTownshend House, near Regent's Park. Elegant and
Alma-Tadema showed artistic ability and thecosmopolitan in decor, their home soon became a
beginnings of his highly methodical and exacting naturepopular venue for gatherings of fellow artists. Fame
as demonstrated in his subsequent paintings. He onlyand prosperity soon followed and in 1876
adopted the now familiar form of his name afterAlma-Tadema became an Associate of the Royal
moving to London in 1870.At the age of 16Academy, being elected to a full Royal Academician in
Alma-Tadema enrolled at the Antwerp Academy1879. The Grosvenor Gallery staged an exhibition of
where he studied under Gustav Wappers and Nicaise287 of his paintings in 1882. He had become one of the
de Keyser, both exponents of the Romanticmost famous painters in Britain.'Building' on this success,
movement in art. Later he became an assistant to theAlma-Tadema drew up plans for a more spectacular
historical painter Baron Hendryk Leys whilst living in thehome - the building for which he found in St John's
house of an archaeologist, Louis de Taye. From theseWood. In fact it was the former home of French artist
two men he began to develop his interest in historyJames Tissot that had been abandoned after the
and archaeology, which was further developed bydeath of his mistress, Kathleen Newton. It was then
contact with the German Egytologist, Georg Ebers. Hefairly modest but had a number of classical features
assisted Leys in painting historical murals in Antwerp'sthat appealed to him (such as the famous colonnade
Town Hall.His early works depicted the history of thebeside a garden pond, which featured in several of
Merovingian dynasty, rulers of Gaul from the 6th to 8thTissot's canvases). However Alma-Tadema made it
centuries AD. However, having visited the Internationalinto almost a palace, designing every detail himself -
Exhibition in London in 1862, he became inspired by thefrom the weather vane in the form of an artist's
Elgin Marbles and Egyptian artefacts in the Britishpalette and the doorway modelled on one from
Museum, leading him to turn ever more towardsPompeii, to the rainspouts in the form of lions' heads.
Egyptian themes.In 1863 he married a French woman,The hall was lined with panels painted by fellow artists
Marie Pauline Gressin de Boisgirard, and theyand the enormous galleried and marble-floored studio
honeymooned in Italy where he encountered thewas crowned with a polished aluminium dome - the
newly-found ruins of Pompeii. So fascinated was hebrightness of the light it reflected noticeably affected
by the Roman remains with their abundance of marblehis paintings from then on.Both of his London homes
that very quickly ancient Roman subject matter camewere famous for their extravagant parties, often in
to the fore in his paintings.The Tademas soon movedfancy dress - the artist himlself having a predilection
to Paris where Lourens entered into a long-termfor dressing as Nero - and where music was always
contract with the well-known art dealer Ernesta feature. Distinguished guests included personalities
Gambart, an influential man with connectionssuch as Tchaikovsky and Enrico
throughout Europe. Within a short time he relocated hisCaruso.Alma-Tadema received awards and honours
studio to Brussels.But in the 1860s, tragedy struck: hisfrom around the world, although notably not from his
only son dying of smallpox in 1865 and his wife in 1869,own country of birth - including a knighthood from
leaving him to care for his two daughters Anna andBritain in 1899 followed by the prestigious Order of
Laurence. But fortune in his career followed swiftlyMerit in 1905. His clients included members of the British
and, in the same year, two of his paintings - A RomanRoyal family and the Russian Imperial Family - he was
Art Lover and Phyrric Dance - were exhibited at thein fact a noted Society portraitist. Indeed approximately
Royal Academy in London.So well were his paintings60 of his 400 plus paintings are commissioned portraits
received overall that, upon visiting England the sameof sitters ranging from the British Prime Minister Arthur
year to see a doctor, and in part due to the possibleBalfour to the Polish pianist and Prime Minister
Prussian invasion of France, Alma-Tadema moved hisPaderewski.By the time of his death in 1912 at the
home to London in 1870.The following year he marriedGerman spa of Wiesbaden, he was so famous an
his seventeen-year-old pupil, Laura Epps, a doctor'sartist that the British 'establishment' saw fit for him to
daughter and member of a then well-known family ofbe buried in St Paul's Cathedral. Soon afterwards, his
cocoa manufacturers. In 1873 he became a naturalizedfamous house and contents were sold - the house
British citizen, at the same time consciously joining hisbeing converted into apartments, leaving few of the
middle name, Alma, to his surname. The hyphenationsplended architectural details.Learn more about
was in fact done by others and this has since becomeLawrence Alma-Tadema and find other biographical
the convention. It also had the fortuitous 'side-effect' ofwriting by Bianca Tavares at Vintage Posters.
elevating his name to a top position in alphabetical