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Post by hans54 on Jan 16, 2007 9:39:33 GMT -6
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Post by Realbird on Jan 18, 2007 19:28:36 GMT -6
Thank you Hans for an extraordinary panorama of pictorial testimony that, obviously, represents the mind-set of the contemporaneous society of Custer's area .
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Post by hans54 on Jan 19, 2007 8:23:35 GMT -6
Agreed, Realbird. And aren't these cyclorama scenes surprisingly well executed, if compared with that period's genre-like pictures and mass market lithographs (some to be found under the same URL) of the LBH battle?
Hans Karkheck
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Post by Scout on Jan 19, 2007 15:36:05 GMT -6
Hans...fantastic stuff. Whatever happened to this masterpiece?
This was probably executed by an art group headed by Theodore Davis. The group included Herman Michalowski, August Lehr, William Schroeter, Wm. Wehner, George Peter and Theodore Breidwiser. Most were german artists from Milwaukee, Wis. This group cranked out
a number of cycloramas in the 1880's into the 1890's. Most were Civil War battles...Gettysburg, Shiloh, Chattanooga. Each artist spealized in one particular area such as trees, landscape, horses, clouds, etc. These paintings were quite the attraction at one time and went on tours around the nation. Some were exhibited at world fairs and people lined up to see these...they were an event when they went on display.
Very few still exist...the Atlanta Cyclorama is still on exhibit and has undergone a one million dollar restoration. Go see it if you get the chance.
This one is beautiful...wish I could see the original. Pieces of some of these have been found through the years. One was found in the 1960's patching a barn wall. Can't imagine anyone actually destroying one of these.
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Post by hans54 on Jan 19, 2007 16:19:04 GMT -6
Scout,
Great information, thanks. No wonder many German artists were involved in this cyclorama business. As you mentioned for the States, cycloramas have also been extremely popular in Germany, starting in the 1870s, right after the Franco-Prussian (in fact Franco-German) war of 1870/71, depicting famous battles of the war (Sedan etc.). In some places cycloramas had their own newly constructed exhibition buildings.
So these were highly experienced special artists, and they were hired over there to continue with American scenes.
Same dilemma here - once the cyclorama hype was over, these exhibitions seemed to have been completely and thoroughly demolished and surprisingly little, just about nothing, is left of the paintings.
Hans Karkheck
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