Dear sitz,
Here is what I was able to find out about the painter Charles
Mendelssohn Horsfall:
Charles Mendelssohn Horsfall, son of a German mother and an English
father, was born in 1862. From the days of his boyhood, he lived in
Jungen, Germany (today Wiag, Poland).
In 1893, he exhibited three pastel portraits - among them "The
Artist's Mother" - at the Salon de Paris exhibition of the French
Societé Nationale. Afterwards, he resided and worked in Berlin.
Until 1914, he often participated in the Große Kunstausstellung (Grand
Art Exhibition) in the German capital, exhibiting his portraits of
ladies and gentlemen from the Berlin elegant society. By the majority,
his work was focussed on pastel paintings. During his time in Berlin,
Charles M. Horsfall enjoyed much credit for his esteemed paintings.
Hosfall's paintings were exhibited at the Berlin Große
Kunstausstellung in 1893, 1894, 1897-1900, 1903, 1906, 1908-1910,
1912, and 1914. Also, he presented his works at the 1914 Salon de
Paris in France and at the Royal Hibernian Academy in Dublin, Ireland.
Charles M. Horsfall painted a portrait of British Fieldmarshal Horatio
Herbert Kitchener (1850-1916) in 1899. This picture is now owned by
the National Portrait Gallery in London, England. They also own a
second painting attributed to C. M. Horsfall, a portrait of Charlotte
Despard (née French).
It seems that Charles M. Horsfall has either not left Germany in World
War I or returned there after 1918; a 1924 German art encylopedia
entry lists him as "living in Germany since his youth".
The presence of two of his works in the London National Portrait
Gallery, however, indicates that he might have left Germany after 1924
to take residence in England, maybe in connection with the National
Socialists coming to power: "Mendelssohn" is a German-Jewish name,
mostly associated with an old family of patrons of the arts and
artists. His German mother might have been a Mendelssohn connected
with this family. This would also explain why Charles M. Horsfall
copied Begas' portrait of Felix Mendelssohn, because F. Mendelssohn
very likely was one of his descendants.
Though the brief biography of Horsfall by the Somoza-Sims Gallery of
Fine Art (see sources listed below) mentions an English mother and a
German father, it is more likely that his mother was German and the
father English, as declared in the 1924 Allgemeines Lexikon der
Bildenden Künstler.
Charles Mendelssohn Horsfall died in 1942.
Unfortunately, there is neither a comprehensive list of his works
available nor any price index. However, it is absolutely beyond all
question that Charles M. Horsfall's paintings are indeed valuable,
even though there are no precise prices available.
To view his "Portrait of a Lady" (1906), please follow this link:
http://www.thesimsgallery.com/biography/bio444.htm
Source: Somoza-Sims Gallery of Fine Art
See the portrait of Lord Kitchener here:
http://www.npg.org.uk/live/search/portrait.asp?search=sa&sText=horsfall&LinkID=mp07131&rNo=0&role=art
Source: National Portrait Gallery
See the portrait of Charlotte Despard here:
http://www.npg.org.uk/live/search/portrait.asp?search=sa&sText=horsfall&LinkID=mp07131&rNo=1&role=art
Source: National Portrait Gallery
Sources:
Thieme / Becker: Allgemeines Lexikon der Bildenden Künstler, Vol. 17.
Published by E.A. Seemann, Leipzig, 1924.
Allgemeines Künstlerlexikon, Bio-Bibliographischer Index, Vol. 5.
Published by K.G. Saur, 2000. ISBN 3-598-23915-7
Somoza-Sims Gallery of Fine Art: Biography of Charles Mendelssohn
Horsfall
http://www.thesimsgallery.com/biography/bio444.htm
National Portrait Gallery: A-Z of Portrait Artists (H)
http://www.npg.org.uk/live/search/a-z/artH.asp
Princess Grace Irish Library: Horatio Herbert Kitchener
http://www.pgil-eirdata.org/html/pgil_datasets/authors/k/Kitchener,HH/life.htm
Search terms used:
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"mendelssohn horsfall"
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"c m horsfall"
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horsfall "1865 1942"
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"charles m horsfall"
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Hope this information proves useful and interesting for you!
Best regards,
Scriptor |
