Max Jakob Friedländer
Encyclopedia
Max Jakob Friedländer was a German art expert (Kunstwissenschaftler) and art historian (Kunsthistoriker). He attained the rank and title of "Geheimrat
" (privy councillor) under the German Empire.
He did not think of himself as an art historian so much as a connoisseur. He gave priority to a critical reading based on sensitivity rather than on grand artistic and or aesthetic theories. He described it as follows: "If the determination of the authorship of an individual work of art most certainly is not the ultimate and highest task of artistic erudition. Even if it were no path to the goal: nevertheless, without a doubt, it is a school for the eye, since there is no formulation of a question which forces us to penetrate so deeply the essence of an individual work as that concerning the identity of the author. The individual work, rightly understood, teaches us what a comprehensive knowledge universal artistic activity is incapable of teaching us." Friedlaender 1944, p. 160.
Geheimrat
Geheimrat was the title of the highest advising officials at the Imperial, royal or principal courts of the Holy Roman Empire, who jointly formed the Geheimer Rat reporting to the ruler...
" (privy councillor) under the German Empire.
He did not think of himself as an art historian so much as a connoisseur. He gave priority to a critical reading based on sensitivity rather than on grand artistic and or aesthetic theories. He described it as follows: "If the determination of the authorship of an individual work of art most certainly is not the ultimate and highest task of artistic erudition. Even if it were no path to the goal: nevertheless, without a doubt, it is a school for the eye, since there is no formulation of a question which forces us to penetrate so deeply the essence of an individual work as that concerning the identity of the author. The individual work, rightly understood, teaches us what a comprehensive knowledge universal artistic activity is incapable of teaching us." Friedlaender 1944, p. 160.
Literary works
- Meisterwerke der niederländischen MalereiPaintingPainting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
des 15. und 16. Jahrhundert, 1903 ("Masterpieces of Netherlandish painting of the 15th and 16th centuries") - Von Jan van EyckJan van EyckJan van Eyck was a Flemish painter active in Bruges and considered one of the best Northern European painters of the 15th century....
bis BruegelBruegelBruegel is an independent economic think tank, based in Brussels. It focuses on economic policy. Bruegel's governance and funding model relies on memberships from Member States of the European Union, international corporations, and other institutions....
, 1916 ("From Jan van Eyck to Bruegel") - A. DürerAlbrecht DürerAlbrecht Dürer was a German painter, printmaker, engraver, mathematician, and theorist from Nuremberg. His prints established his reputation across Europe when he was still in his twenties, and he has been conventionally regarded as the greatest artist of the Northern Renaissance ever since...
, 1923 - Die altniederländische Malerei, 1924-37 (translated into English as "Early Netherlandish painting")
- Echt und unecht, 1929 ("Real and unreal")
- Von KunstArtArt is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....
und Kennerschaft, 1946 ("On art and connoisseurship") - EssayEssayAn essay is a piece of writing which is often written from an author's personal point of view. Essays can consist of a number of elements, including: literary criticism, political manifestos, learned arguments, observations of daily life, recollections, and reflections of the author. The definition...
s über die Landschaftsmalerei, 1947 ("Essays on landscape painting") - Early Netherlandish Painting, vol. VII, Leiden and Brussels, 1972
Literature
- Friedrich Winkler: Friedländer, Max. In: NDBNeue Deutsche BiographieNeue Deutsche Biographie is a biographical reference work published in German by the Historical Committee at the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities and printed by Duncker & Humblot in Berlin. It is the successor to the Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie...
Bd. 5, S. 455 f. - Annick Born: Antwerp Mannerism: a fashionable style? in: ExtravagANT. A forgotten chapter of Antwerp painting 1500-1530. Catalogue Maastricht and Antwerp 2005, pp. 10–19.