Sublime, quaint or modern

1800 - 1830

Beginning and precursors

Any architectural or plastic monument displayed in public to honour an outstanding person can serve as a monument.

Therefore, the Beethoven bust which Franz Klein produced in 1812 can be seen as a monument itself because Beethoven's friend, Andreas Streicher, ordered this bust and intended to display it in a hall of his piano manufacture along with other portraits of admired musicians. The room served as a concert hall, so the public had access to the bust. Although the sculpture is quite modest and its main function is just to portray the composer, it can already be regarded as the first Beethoven monument.

The aspect of veneration becomes much more visible when taking a look at Beethoven's tomb which some friends of the composer had put up on the Währing cemetery.

The tomb resembles a group of tombs erected at the end of the 18th and early 19th century for which monumental architectural elements were used to honour the deceased in an elevated way and enhance their importance. Obelisks were especially popular for these middle class tombs.

Soon, these memorials lost their original purpose and tombs became middle class monuments which could be put up almost anywhere. An early example for such a genuine monument for a member of the middle classes is the obelisk erected for Johann Georg Büsch, a grammar school teacher from Hamburg. The similarity of such monuments to Beethoven's tomb gives evidence that people in Vienna followed these ideas and that Beethoven's tombstone marks the border between evocative memorial and monument.

1830 - 1845

The first Beethoven monument

Briefly after the composer's death, the cities of Bonn and Vienna felt the desire to put up a monument for Beethoven. As it was rather unusual to erect a monument in honour of an artist who had just died, the memorial should be fairly modern.

As a result, Vienna artist Friedrich von Amerling (1803-1887) and sculptor Ernst Julius Hähnel (1811-1891) from Dresden chose to depict Beethoven in contemporary clothing in their drafts. To express the composer's creative achievements, both artists portrayed Beethoven while composing and holding a writing feather in his right hand.

While it would take another 40 years until a Beethoven monument was finally erected in Vienna, the city of Bonn had a monument put up already in 1845.The ceremonial unveiling of the memorial was preceded by a long and arduous process of creation characterised by many disputes among the members of the monument committee. The involved musicians, historians and artists had fairly different opinions about how a monument for Beethoven should look like.

After many tries, Julius Hähnel was finally able to convince the Bonn committee in favour of his concept which included a Beethoven statue on a high pedestal adorned with allegorical reliefs. After Franz Liszt eased the project's financial problems through a generous contribution, the monument could finally be completed. Its unveiling was celebrated with a several day long music festival which founded the tradition of the still existing Beethoven festivals in Bonn.

1845

The Beethoven monument on the Münsterplatz in Bonn

When a competition for designing a Beethoven monument was held in Bonn, a number of more or less renowned German sculptors applied for this reputable project. In the end, the draft by Ernst Julius Hähnel, a successful sculptor from Dresden and Munich, was chosen. His concept was regarded as modern and still elevated enough.

Hähnel portrayed Beethoven in the clothing typical for German and Austrian middle classes during the first half of the 19th century: Shirt, neckerchief, long sleeved jacket and long trousers. However, the artist added a large coat to give the composer a certain superior impression.

Beethoven's pose - his legs are slightly apart and he holds a writing feather in his raised right hand - should express his musical inspiration as well as the trendsetting aspect of his art.

Whereas Hähnel's Beethoven statue was met with criticism - people considered the statue as either too elevated or too plain - the reliefs which Hähnel created for the high pedestal found the public's approval.

They feature allegorical depictions of the different types of music composed by Beethoven.

1845 - 1900

Further development of the Bonn type of monument

When designing the Beethoven monument for Bonn, Ernst Julius Hähnel used a monument type that was quite popular for the honouring of middle class artists, scholars and scientists in the 19th century. The depicted person usually stood with their legs slightly apart on a more or less square pedestal which was decorated with inscriptions and reliefs. In most cases they wore contemporary clothing as well as a large coat to enlarge them optically and render them more monumental.

Other examples for this type of monument include the monument for Jean Paul in Bayreuth (1841), the Goethe monument in Frankfurt (1844) and the Herder monument in Weimar (1850).

This way of depiction was popular all over Europe and continued well through the first half of the 20th century. German-American sculptor Theodore Bauer (1835-approx. 1902) reverted to it when creating the Beethoven statue for the Library of Congress in Washington D.C.

1845 - 1910

The time of the great Beethoven monuments

The tradition of plain monuments showing a standing Beethoven on a more or less high pedestal continued well through the second half of the 19th century. At the same time, quite a different and much more monumental style developed where the composer usually sat in an armchair or on a throne.

As one of the first artists, sculptor Friedrich Drake from Berlin (1805-1882) designed such a monument. Drake probably began developing his ideas shortly after Beethoven's death in the 1830s. When the competition for the Bonn Beethoven monument was held, he submitted a draft which is characterised particularly by a lavishly decorated pedestal and the fact that Beethoven is shown in a sitting position.

Although Drake's draft was regarded as too heroic and therefore not chosen by the monument committee, his basic concepts should lay the path for the further development of the Beethoven monuments of the late 19th century.

1850 - 1910

Beethoven becomes an "Olympian figure"

In portraits and monuments, outstanding musical achievements of a person were traditionally expressed by adding a lyre. This instrument, originally reserved for god Apoll and muses Erato and Terpsichore, can already be found in 18th century depictions of musicians and composers.

On the one hand, this motive should refer to the musical context. On the other hand, a concrete relation to the Olympian gods and muses should be established. Simultaneously, artists aimed at expressing music's divine source of inspiration.

On a painting by Willibrord Joseph Mähler (1778-1860) the 34 year old Ludwig van Beethoven already holds a lyre in his hand. In the monuments that were to be put up for Beethoven, the composer was soon equated with Apoll. In drafts from 1845, the composer is portrayed in the large coat so typical for ancient gods and holding a lyre and sometimes even Apoll's laurel wreath. The model shown here, created by Gustav Blaeser (1813-1874) for the Bonn Beethoven monument, is a typical example for this idea.

Whereas this type of Beethoven depiction was met with criticism and deemed too heroic in the first half of the 19th century, the general taste later changed drastically. Now the theoretical link between Beethoven and the god became more and more popular until a complete heroisation of Beethoven was reached at the end of the 19th century.

Emil Eugen Sachse's (1828-1887) work clearly expresses the transition from the middle class Beethoven monument from around 1850 and the heroic interpretation that came up in the second half of the century. Beethoven is still portrayed in a standing position and wears the clothes typical for 1825. However, his coat is far more voluminous than in older drafts and resembles the robes worn by the ancient gods. The laurel wreath in his hands is another sign of this relation.

1878 - 1880

Caspar Zumbusch's Beethoven monument - I

The most famous Beethoven monument from the second half of the 19th century is without doubt the one created by Caspar Clemens Zumbusch (1830-1915) in Vienna. The tendency to depict Beethoven as a hero and express the meaning of his music by scores of allegorical figures is even stronger than in Friedrich Drake's draft.

The composer rests enthroned far away from the beholder on whom he looks down. The front and rear side of the monument feature puttos at the composer's feet, representing his symphonies or his music in general. Prometheus and goddess Fama are on the sides of the monument. The entire construction is supported by a three-step base.

1878 - 1880

Caspar Zumbusch's Beethoven monument - II

The Beethoven monument by Caspar Zumbusch was not the first monument for a Vienna musician. In 1862, the Vienna Male Choral Society had a statue erected for Franz Schubert. It was designed by artists Theophilus Edvard von Hansen (1813-1891) and Carl Kundmann (1838-1919) and unveiled in 1872.

In the 1870s Vienna felt a need to finally set up a monument for Ludwig van Beethoven and held a competition. Well-known artists - particularly Franz Liszt and Johannes Brahms supported the project with generous financial contributions so that the monument could be presented to the public on May 1st, 1880.

The new and special features of Carl Zumbusch's monument become particularly clear when comparing it to the slightly older Schubert monument from Karl Kundmann. Kundmann also presented the composer in a sitting position on a high pedestal and wrapped in a large coat. However, his monument is less pompous and conveys a more private atmosphere. This is mainly due to the pedestal's design which, for the Schubert monument, was decorated with reliefs, whereas the pedestal of the Beethoven monument features vivid sculptures.

Therefore, Caspar Zumbusch's monument represents the strong self-confidence of the German and Austrian upper middle classes which regarded themselves as the main supporters of German art during the second half of the 19th century. In accordance with this conviction, the monument should not only honour an important person but also adorn the city, as a newspaper article from 1877 says.

Around 1900

From Apollo to Jupiter

The admiration for Beethoven as the epitome of a creative artists hit its peak at the end of the 19th and during the first third of the 20th century. The heroisation of the composer in fine arts was not restricted to Germany and Austria but was also expressed in works by French artists and in various monuments erected on the American continent.

From now on Beethoven was not depicted as a contemporary musician or inspired composer but compared to the heroically struggling titan Prometheus or even Jupiter, the highest of all gods.

To express this special admiration for Beethoven, many artists such as Franz von Stuck (1863-1938) or Joseph Adolf Lang (1873-1928) portrayed the composer on a very high throne. By using plain and blocklike forms, they tried to give their works a particularly monumental impression to show the distance between the titan "Beethoven" and the ordinary human being.

Max Klinger's Beethoven monument is probably the best example for such late romantic ideas in fine arts. Klinger (1857-1920) strongly admired Beethoven. He believed that music was clearly superior to sculpture as it depended less on the material world and was therefore closer to deity than fine arts. Beethoven, who in Klinger's eyes was the greatest composer, was therefore not just an inspired and creative man. In the artist's opinion, he had almost become a god and the epitome of an artist.

Max Klinger's Beethoven monument

Already in the 1880s Max Klinger, then living in Paris as a student, focused on the project of creating a monument in honour of Ludwig van Beethoven. As he once said, he had the first ideas for a sculpture when playing the piano. Thus, the first version of the later monument was born. Klinger then realised his idea in gypsum and coloured it vividly.

During the decades before 1900, Max Klinger used this model to design a large-format sculpture. He unveiled it for the first time in public at the exhibition of the Vienna Secession in 1902.

Also Max Klinger depicted Beethoven as a bare-breasted Olympic deity. Thereby, the sculptor alluded to the ancient way of depicting gods. The large coat that is wrapped around the composer's lower body and the sandals he wears were designed according to traditions of the ancient world. Beethoven sits on a richly decorated throne. At his feet rests an eagle, Jupiter's heraldic animal. Beethoven's hands are fisted, his facial expression seems concentrated and energetic.

Beethoven's "high rank" in Klinger's sculpture is additionally supported by allegorical scenes on the throne's exterior where the composer is also related to redemption motives taken from Christianity.

Max Klinger presented his Beethoven sculpture for the first time in public in Vienna in 1902. The room at the Secession building, where the work was put up for display, features a frieze of figures by Gustav Klimt (1962 - 1918). The unusual sculpture caused a public indignation because it was regarded as inadequate and consequently met with derision.

Only after quite some years could Klinger sell the sculpture to the city of Leipzig. From then on, his monument was seen as the ideal of a heroic Beethoven monument, showing the composer as an epitome of the human mind which can become godlike through achievement.

1900 - 1910

Beethoven monuments of the Reform Movements in the early 20th century

Max Klinger was not the only artist of the early 20th century to express his admiration for Beethoven. During this time a whole range of works was created. Particularly interesting is the project by Fidus, a reform artist, which is based on a monumental concept. Whatever activities he engaged in, Fidus always aimed at reforming the modern world's entire worldview and view of life.

Consequently, he wanted to create alternatives for the power of established occidental churches and Christianity. From this approach he developed several drafts and concepts for temples to glorify outstanding achievements and ideas of the occidental culture.

His draft for a "Beethoven temple" is to be seen in this context: A rotunda with a cupola and a centre with an overdimensional Beethoven portrait.

The first draft for this sculpture dates from 1900 and includes a half length portrait of the composer. A naked female figure - probably the human soul - stands in front of Beethoven. Just like many other projects, Fidus never realised his draft for a Beethoven temple.

1900 - 1910

Searching for new forms

While Max Klinger and Fidus developed their romantic ideas of Beethoven as a "superman", other artists created their own concepts for a Beethoven monument. Some of these drafts and models strictly followed the traditional types and forms of the 19th century. Other artists tried to break new grounds.

Of particular interest is the Beethoven monument erected by Robert Weigl (1851/52 - 1902) in Vienna-Heiligenstadt. Weigl's approach was clearly different from the concepts of the late romantics and is more conform to the naturalistic idea of the mid 19th century.

Weigl used a lithograph by Martin Tejcek (1780 - 1847) that shows Beethoven on a walk as model for his Beethoven figure. The artist created his sculpture closely following the depicted Beethoven and thus achieved a very realistic effect. His monument should give the beholder the impression as if he had just met Beethoven on a walk. Here, Beethoven is shown in an entirely human way.

Only a few years after this sculpture was put up, such a concept was regarded as not monumental enough. As a consequence, a peripteral enclosure was built around the statue to separate it from the beholder's world.

Beethoven depictions influenced by Auguste Rodin

Antoine Bourdelle - I

In the years around 1900 the admiration for Beethoven reached a special height not only in Germany and Austria but also in France where men of letters and artists focused on Beethoven and his art. Two artists living in Paris were especially important for the development of a novel and modern type of monument: Antoine Bourdelle (1862-1929) and Naoum Aronson (1873-1943). Both were taught by and worked for Auguste Rodin (1840-1917), without doubt the most important European sculptor of the late 19th century. In their style both artists were strongly influenced by Rodin's expressive works.

Throughout his life, Emile Antoine Bourdelle dealt with Ludwig van Beethoven. He created the first Beethoven busts in 1889. Until his death in 1929, Bourdelle repeatedly focused on the great composer's personality and art, creating many designs, models, paintings and sculptures depicting Beethoven. Even today, more than 20 different portraits of the composer painted by Bourdelle exist.

Although Bourdelle's admiration for Beethoven was as high as the admiration shown by German late romantics, his style is entirely different from the way German artists portrayed the composer. Around 1900 at the latest Bourdelle was not interested in creating Beethoven's realistic looks but preferred a monumental depiction of the composer, expressing pathos, tragedy and heroic passion. To achieve this effect, Bourdelle used free forms full of vigorous movement. In their expressivity and passions, these forms are evocative of works by Rodin.

Beethoven depictions influenced by Auguste Rodin

Antoine Bourdelle - II

Bourdelle's fascination for Beethoven continued until the sculptor died. During the last five years of his life, Bourdelle produced no less than six busts and sculptures showing the composer.

This figure named "La Pathétique" or "Beethoven à la croix" is Bourdelle's last work. It shows how strongly Beethoven epitomised the suffering and struggling genius in the eyes of the late 19th and early 20th century artists. The symbol of the cross proves that the composer was not only identified with pagan deities but was also interpreted as the suffering redeemer in a Christian sense. In this way, Bourdelle's works also express an intimate avowal of his own self and his self-conception as a creatively working and struggling mind.

Beethoven depictions influenced by Auguste Rodin

Naoum Aronson's Beethoven monument in Bonn

The second student of Rodin who concentrated on designing a monument for Beethoven was the Latvian sculptor Naoum Aronson (1873-1943).

In the summer of 1905 Naoum Aronson visited the concerts of the seventh Bonn Chamber Music Festival organised by the Beethoven-House. Under the impression of the performed music, the sculptor already began his first studies for a Beethoven bust during his visit.

Shortly later, Aronson produced a monumental gypsum model in Paris. The intensive effect of his Beethoven portrait is particularly enhanced by the way Beethoven's head is tilted and the clouding of his eyes. The composer does not face the beholder but averts his gaze and appears as an artist full of passionate ideas but living in his own world - an opinion totally in line with the ideas of the early 20th century.

Aronson gave his model to the Beethoven-House which appreciated this modern depiction of the composer so much that it asked Aronson in August 1905 to reproduce the bust in bronze. In the autumn of 1905, a granite pedestal was made for the sculpture following Aronson's draft. On December 17th, 1905 the monument was finally unveiled in the garden of the Beethoven-House. There it can still be seen and admired by the museum's visitors.

1920 - 1939

Beethoven monuments between tradition and modernity

The general veneration of Beethoven reached a second peak between 1920 and 1930. On the one hand this was due to the fact that 1927 was the 100th anniversary of Beethoven's death day. On the other hand, this intensive focus on Beethoven in Germany was a result of the traumatic experience from the First World War. After the military defeat, Germany reverted to cultural achievements in order to obtain national self-confidence.

The monuments and monument drafts from this time are characterised by their concepts and style being very various. They share the intention of depicting Beethoven not so much as a person but instead show his music. Thus, quite different approaches resulted where Beethoven's artistic achievement was the main subject, whereas depicting the composer as a person was given less importance.

An example for such an approach is Theodor von Gosen's (1873 - approx. 1925) Beethoven monument in Mexico City. Allegorical elements, which in the 19thh century were typically part of a monument's pedestal area, became the most important part of the monument. A winged Genius is placed on a high pedestal. A figure - the suffering human soul - kneels in front of him and pleads for redemption. Beethoven's mask, which is attached to the pedestal, clearly suggests the message that redemption can be found in his music.

1926

A Beethoven monument in Berlin

When Berlin arranged a competition regarding a Beethoven monument in 1926, the search for new forms for such a monument hit another peak. Many famous sculptors submitted drafts and models, among them Ernst Barlach (1870 - 1938) and Georg Kolbe (1877 - 1947). German press amply dealt with the subject and partially severe criticism was voiced. As opinions among the competition committee members and the press were rather different and as the entire project was quite controversial, the prize awarding never took place and the plans for a new Beethoven monument were finally dropped completely.

Only two of the submitted drafts were later carried out as monuments: Georg Kolbe's and Peter Christian Breuer's (1856 - 1930).

The Beethoven monument by Breuer, who came from Cologne, has a particularly long and checkered history. Obviously, Breuer had already dealt with designing a monument for Ludwig van Beethoven around 1910. However, the draft was not realised. When the Berlin competition took place, Breuer submitted a draft for which he reverted to his prior ideas.

Now, he designed a vast site composed by architectural elements and various figurative depictions. At its centre, the monument featured a seated larger-than-life sized Beethoven. After the Berlin monument project was given up, the city of Bonn raised an interest in Breuer's draft. The sculptor then edited his concept. The originally planned site should now be smaller and less pompous and be integrated in a park scenery.

1926 - 1938

Peter Christian Breuer's Beethoven monument

Eventually, only one element from Breuer's model was actually realised in a larger format. Fritz Diederich, a long-time assistant of Breuer's created Beethoven's figure in granite. After Breuer's death, the scuplture was displayed in public at the 'Alte Zoll' in Bonn. In 1949, it was removed and put up for display again in 1977 - this time at the 'Rheinaue' in Bonn.

1950 - 2000

A time for experiments - I

Already during the first half of the 20th century, artists designing monuments for Ludwig van Beethoven were looking for new concepts. As many of the previously accepted forms and subject matters were being questioned due to the experiences of the Second World War, the search for new concepts even increased in the years after 1945.

This a number of new approaches were developed, quite different in their meaning and style. American sculptor Eugen Cuica (*1913), for example, chose purely abstract forms to express his veneration of Beethoven's music for his monuments.

Sculptor Klaus Kammerichs from Düsseldorf went an entirely different way when focusing on Beethoven as a person. He created a large-format, three-dimensional version of the Beethoven portrait by painter Joseph Karl Stieler (1781-1858). Stieler's painting from 1820 is now one of the most popular and famous Beethoven depictions of the 19th century.

The monument erected by Klaus Kammerichs in front of the Beethoven Hall in Bonn in 1986 captures the whole basic difficulty a modern society experiences regarding the exposure to Beethoven as well as its opinion towards outstanding artists of the past. In his work, Kammerichs related to a portrait that influenced our idea of Beethoven's appearance like no other portrait. Therefore, the sculptor not only created a monument that looked familiar but also made it clear how strongly conventions and ideas from the past influence modern society in its view of Beethoven.

1950 - 2000

A time for experiments - II

For its first public presentation, the Beethoven monument by Klaus Kammerichs was not yet called "Beethon" as it is today but "Mythos Beethoven" (Beethoven Legend). The monument was created with the intention of expressing the difficulty that arises when dealing with Beethoven these days.

The history of the Beethoven monuments of the 19th and 20th century not only mirrors the development of an art genre but is closely linked to the way how Ludwig van Beethoven was revered during the various epochs. All monument projects also express the general opinion the broad public had about Beethoven.

The fact that the first efforts to create a monument for the dead composer go back to only a couple of years after Beethoven died, and that memorials and monuments are still erected, gives clear evidence that the composer's charisma and the influence of his music still prevail until today. On the other hand, it shows how strong the general need was and is to honour an outstanding composer with a public monument. We can expect with great expection how monuments for Beethoven will look like in the third millennium.

Literature

On the topic in general


F. J. Alai: Beethoven glorified in statues. London 2000.

I. Bodsch: 'Monument für Beethoven'. Die Künstlerstandbilder des bürgerlichen Zeitalters als Sinnstifter nationaler Identität?
in: I. Bodsch (Hrsg.): Monument für Beethoven. Bonn 1995, S. 157-177

R. Cadenbach: Mythos Beethoven. Laaber 1986.

H. Hallensleben: Das Bonner Beethoven-Denkmal als frühes "bürgerliches Standbild"
in: I. Bodsch (Hrsg.): Monument für Beethoven. Bonn 1995, S. 29-37.

J. Schmoll genannt Eisenwerth: Zur Geschichte des Beethovendenkmals
in: Saarbrücker Studien zur Musikwissenschaft. Bd 1. Kassel 1966, S. 242-277.


On individual artists and monuments

S. Einholz: Peter Breuer (1856-1930). Ein Plastiker zwischen Tradition und Moderne.
Phil. Diss. Berlin 1984.

D. Gleisberg (Hrsg.): Max Klinger, 1857-1920. Leipzig 1992.

H. Guratzsch (Hrsg.): Max Klinger. Bestandskatalog der Bildwerke, Gemälde und Zeichnungen im Museum der bildenden Künste Leipzig. Leipzig 1995.

I. Jianou / M. Dufet: Bourdelle. Paris 1984.

G. Kapner: Ringstraßendenkmäler. Zur Geschichte der Ringstraßendenkmäler. Dokumentation. Wiesbaden 1973.

E.-M. Klother: Emile Antoine Bourdelle: 'Ludwig van Beethoven (Grand Masque Tragique)', 1901
in: Kölner Museums-Bulletin. (2003) 4, S. 13-22.

H. Loos: Max Klinger und das Bild des Komponisten
in: Imago Musicae. 13 (1996), S. 165-188.

P. Naredi-Rainer: Granitstarker Klang. Max Klingers "Beethoven", die Musik Gustav Mahlers
und die Sprache der Materialien
in: P. Naredi-Rainer (Hrsg.): Imitatio. Berlin 2001, S. 218- 227.

S. Schaal: Das Beethovendenkmal von Ernst Julius Hähnel in Bonn
in: I. Bodsch (Hrsg.): Monument für Beethoven. Bonn 1995, S. 39-134.

R. Y: Fidus, der Tempelkünstler. T. 1.2. Göppingen 1985.

Legal notice

Publisher:
Beethoven-Haus Bonn
Bonngasse 24-26
D-53111 Bonn
Germany

Texts:
Dr. Silke Bettermann