John Henry Mohrmann ( Estebrügge ( Germany ), 16 December 1857 - Bloomsbury ( Canada ), 22 February 1916 ) was an American-Belgian-Canadian painter , specializing in ship portraits.
Genealogy
John Henry Mohrmann, born Johann Hinrich in Estebrügge Mohrmann, near Hannover (Germany). He was the son of Henry Mohrmann and Anna Meyer, the family immigrated to San Francisco when he was two years old. His father was a magistrate in Oakland . His mother died when he was ten years old. He married on May 7, 1886 by Juana Meyer of Fray Bentos in Uruguay between 1888 and 1908 and had seven children together.
Life
Mohrmann was a little hard base sailor who knew how successful maritime career to combine with an artistic talent. The combination of its maritime and artistic knowledge made him a major ship portraitist, a painter in order of shipowners, captains, shipbuilders and maritime companies painted portraits of real ships.
Mohrmann from childhood grew up in contact with the sea . This was done by ships in the harbor of San Francisco walked. In 1870 he ran away from home and he mustered on a sailing ship as a cabin boy. He was 18 years long the seas, now painting as a sideline. He was also an avid reader and finally spoke six languages.
Mohrmann, a year in Kassel have stayed in the company of an Italian friend. There they would set painter learned profession, and murals in a church run. Together they would in Britain as restorers of paintings are worked. But once again strapped for cash, he sat again he chose the seafaring life.
Antwerp time
From 1884 on Mohrmann lived in Antwerp in a street Casier. He soon moved to St. Aldegondiskaai 46, located near the docks here anyway he must have received some artistic training as he began a studio and practiced now include portraiture, landscape painting and painting stage sets and ship portraits. In fact he has only one known portrait painted, ie a self-portrait (in 1884) he opstuurde to his future parents-in Uruguay to do but to show that he could support his wife and his art.
After his marriage in South America, in 1886, he returned to Antwerp, where he lived in Nassau 11. In 1883, Mohrmann Ekeren to attend, then he returned to the center of Antwerp back (Brouwersvliet 30, later Rijnkaai 18) and settled in the year 1901 in his "Villa Juana" in Hoboken.
He painted a number of landscapes, but it was his ship portraits that are most loved by his audience. He gave himself to these paintings is not too high artistic value, but they gave him a good income. The detail in the painting depended on the amount the buyer was willing to pay. He could have painted many more, but he started only one painting if he felt like it or what he was strapped for cash.
He was not shy about money and debt, frolic in dealing with potential customers, jovial and good family man. He spoke many languages, as portraitist, he was a self-made man. Since 1888 he was a member of the Masonic Lodge "The ALL élèves Themis".
Canada
In the spring of 1913, shortly before the outbreak of World War I , Mohrmann week with his family to Canada (Barrhead, Alberta ). His two eldest sons had been one year previously left to the arrival of the family to prepare. When he arrived, the house was not built. Life was hard and there was always a shortage of money in the family. He soon regretted this move. He looked for work, even in Minnesota (USA). By hard labor and harsh climate, his health deteriorated. He made a few paintings, but found no audience for them. He died at his home in Bloomsbury on February 22, 1916 of pneumonia and a weakened heart, full of nostalgia for his former life in Antwerp.
Body of work
Mohrmanns greatest merit is that a ship portraitist: the bulk of his prolific oeuvre dates from after 1890, but his works known to him in 1881 and 1885 dated. By late 2008, a total of over 420 works by him obsolete. Approximately 25 are family owned, over 100 in number (maritime) museum, owned by several merchants and the rest are privately owned. As in the Werder Collection (see below www.fineartemporium.com) in Germany, the collection of Prof. T. Siersdorfer in Essen (8 pieces) and (former) shipping companies. In Belgium, the Compagnie Maritime Belge (13 pieces) and in Germany, including at the Sloman Neptune Schiffahrts AG in Bremen (5) and the former A. Kirsten Reederei in Hamburg.
In Antwerp Mohrmann received orders from captains and other marine environments from almost all maritime countries the Scheldt city visited. Mohrmann used photography as an aid in his work. Along with Jacobsen, Semple and many others belong to the prime Mohrmann scheepsportrettisten in the oil painting technique. Him sailor knew this tradition one last highlight in Antwerp. After him the task was taken over entirely by photography. Needless to say, meticulous paintings Mohrmanns an invaluable maritime historical value. Most of his paintings have a size of 60x100 cm.
His paintings now achieve high prices at recent auctions.
Museums
· Aabenraa, Denmark, Sonderyiland Museum
· Mariehamm-Aland, Finland, Åland Sjofartsmuseum
· Antwerp, National Maritime Museum (about 30 works)
· Bergen, Norway, Bergens Sjofartsmuseum
· Brake, Germany, Schiffahrtsmuseum of Oldenburgischen Weserhafen
· Bremen, Focke Museum
· Bremerhaven, Deutsche Schiffahrtsmuseum
· Dubrovnik, Croatia, Dubrovnik Maritime Museum
· Greenwich National Maritime Museum
· Gothenburg, Gotborg Maritime Museum
· Hamburg Altonaer Museum and Maritime Museum
· Liverpool, Merseyside Maritime Museum
· Maine, USA Maritime Museum
· Murberget, Sweden Västernorrland Ländsmuseet
· New Bedford, Old Dartmouth Historical Society Whaling Museum
· Newport News, Mariner's Museum
· Ostend, Mu.ZEE (in depot Oostends Historical Museum De Plate )
· Oslo, Norsk Sjofartsmuseum
· Rostock, Germany, Schifffahrtsmuseum
· Rotterdam Maritime Museum
· Salem, USA, Peabody-Essex Museum
· San Francisco, San Francisco Maritime Museum
· Stavanger, Stavanger Sjofartmuseum
· Vegesack. Heimatmuseum
· Flushing, Zeeland maritime muZEEum
· Westrhauderfehn, Fehn-und Schiffahrtsmuseum
· Wismar, Heimatmuseum
· Yarmouth (Nova Scotia), Yarmouth County Museum
