# Christian Albrecht Jensen > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Christian_Albrecht_Jensen > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Christian_Albrecht_Jensen.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Albrecht_Jensen > Source revision: 1356588603 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) Danish painter (1792–1870) Christian Albrecht Jensen Self-portrait, 1836 Born (1792-06-26)26 June 1792 Bredstedt, Duchy of Schleswig Died 13 July 1870(1870-07-13) (aged 78) Copenhagen, Denmark Education Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts Known for Painting Movement Danish Golden Age **Christian Albrecht Jensen** (26 June 1792 – 13 July 1870) was a Danish painter who specialised in [portrait painting](/source/Portrait_painting) and was active during the [Danish Golden Age](/source/Danish_Golden_Age). Painting more than 400 portraits over the course of his career, he depicted most of the leading figures of the Danish Golden Age, including the writer [Hans Christian Andersen](/source/Hans_Christian_Andersen), the painter [Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg](/source/Christoffer_Wilhelm_Eckersberg), the sculptor [Bertel Thorvaldsen](/source/Bertel_Thorvaldsen), the physicist [Hans Christian Ørsted](/source/Hans_Christian_%C3%98rsted) and the theologian [N. F. S. Grundtvig](/source/N._F._S._Grundtvig). Although Jensen experienced considerable commercial success, he received little official appreciation from the artistic establishment of his day. In particular, the art historian and critic [Niels Lauritz Høyen](/source/Niels_Lauritz_H%C3%B8yen) criticized his style, finding his paintings 'unfinished'. ## Early life and education Jensen was born at [Bredstedt](/source/Bredstedt) in [Nordfriesland](/source/Nordfriesland). From 1810 to 1816, he attended the [Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts](/source/Royal_Danish_Academy_of_Fine_Arts) in Copenhagen where he studied under [Christian August Lorentzen](/source/Christian_August_Lorentzen). From 1817 to 1818, he studied at the [Academy of Fine Arts](/source/Dresden_Academy_of_Fine_Arts) in Dresden. ## Time abroad The sculptor [H. E. Freund](/source/Hermann_Ernst_Freund) portrayed during Jensen's stay in Rome, 1818–20 In 1818, he traveled to [Rome](/source/Rome) by way of [Vienna](/source/Vienna), [Venice](/source/Venice), [Bologna](/source/Bologna) and [Florence](/source/Florence). When he arrived, he joined the large colony of Danish-German artists' who lived in the city at the time and also met the sculptor [Bertel Thorvaldsen](/source/Bertel_Thorvaldsen). During his years in Rome, Jensen painted small, informal portraits of many of his fellow artists, including the writer [Bernhard Severin Ingemann](/source/Bernhard_Severin_Ingemann) who visited Rome from 1818 to 1819, and the sculptor [Hermann Ernst Freund](/source/Hermann_Ernst_Freund), Thorvaldsen's closest associate from 1818 to 1828.[1] After leaving Rome, he made an unsuccessful attempt to establish himself as a portrait painter in [Hamburg](/source/Hamburg). ## Success and criticism Back in Copenhagen in the winter of 1822/23, the portrait scene was dominated by [Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg](/source/Christoffer_Wilhelm_Eckersberg)'s sober, Neoclassical style, yet Jensen's more psychological portraits won immediate popularity.[1] Up through the 1820s, he portrayed a large number of prominent members of Danish society but in spite of his commercial success he received little appreciation from art critics or from the establishment at the Academy and when a professorial chair became vacant after [Christian August Lorentzen](/source/Christian_August_Lorentzen) died in 1828 he was passed by. [Carl Friedrich Gauss](/source/Carl_Friedrich_Gauss), 1840 After 1830, commissions dwindled and he experienced financial difficulties. In response, he started collaborating with the historical collections at [Frederiksborg Castle](/source/Frederiksborg_Castle), painting both copies of older pictures and originals. This led to a controversy with [Niels Lauritz Høyen](/source/Niels_Lauritz_H%C3%B8yen), an influential art historian and critic who, from the beginning, had been critical of his style, finding his pictures 'unfinished'.[1] From 1837, he increasingly looked to other countries for customers. By the [Pulkovo Observatory](/source/Pulkovo_Observatory), which opened near [Saint Petersburg](/source/Saint_Petersburg), he was commissioned to paint 11 portraits of leading international scientists. His painting of [Carl Friedrich Gauss](/source/Carl_Friedrich_Gauss) from that series remains the most famous portrait of the mathematician.[2] Other portrayed scientists included the astronomer [Wilhelm von Struve](/source/Friedrich_Georg_Wilhelm_von_Struve). ## Late life The 1840s brought a further decline in orders, prompted by his political views which were not in line with the [nationalist](/source/Nationalism) tendencies at the time as well as by continued criticism from Høyen. Eventually, after completing more than 400 portraits, he stopped painting. His last two works, portraits of Andreas Christian Krog (1854) and the theologian [Andreas Gottlob Rudelbach](/source/Andreas_Gottlob_Rudelbach), are considered to be among his best.[1] For the remainder of his life, he worked as an assistant at the Royal Print Collection and as a conservator, supplementing his income by selling paintings from his large art collection.[1] ## Gallery - *Cecilie Lønborg*, 1819 - *Cathrine Jensen* (the artist's wife), 1825 - *Birgitte Sobotker Hohlenberg*, 1826 - *[Adam Gottlob Oehlenschläger](/source/Adam_Gottlob_Oehlenschl%C3%A4ger)*, 1832 - *[Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg](/source/Christoffer_Wilhelm_Eckersberg)*, 1832 - *[Hans Christian Andersen](/source/Hans_Christian_Andersen)*, 1836 - *[N. F. S. Grundtvig](/source/N._F._S._Grundtvig)*, 1843 - [William Martin Leake](/source/William_Martin_Leake), [National Portrait Gallery, London](/source/National_Portrait_Gallery%2C_London), 1838 - *[Andreas Gottlob Rudelbach](/source/Andreas_Gottlob_Rudelbach)*, 1858 ## See also Wikimedia Commons has media related to [Christian Albrecht Jensen](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Christian_Albrecht_Jensen). - [Art of Denmark](/source/Art_of_Denmark) - [List of Danish painters](/source/List_of_Danish_painters) ## References 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Gyldendal_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Gyldendal_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Gyldendal_1-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-Gyldendal_1-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-Gyldendal_1-4) ["C. A. Jensen"](http://www.denstoredanske.dk/Kunst_og_kultur/Billedkunst/Billedkunst,_nordisk_nyklassicisme/Christian_Albrecht_Jensen). Gyldendal. Retrieved 2010-08-23. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["About the Gauss Portrait"](https://web.archive.org/web/20100826100713/http://www.mathunion.org/general/prizes/gauss/portrait/). International Mathematical Union. Archived from [the original](http://www.mathunion.org/general/prizes/gauss/portrait/) on 2010-08-26. Retrieved 2010-08-24. ## Sources - Cederstrøm, Elisabeth (2003). "Jensen, Christian Albrecht". [*Grove Art Online*](https://www.oxfordartonline.com/groveart/display/10.1093/gao/9781884446054.001.0001/oao-9781884446054-e-7000044602). v t e Danish Golden Age (1800–1850) Centres Golden Age Copenhagen People Architecture Michael Gottlieb Bindesbøll Jørgen Hansen Koch Andreas Hallander Christian Frederik Hansen Gustav Friedrich Hetsch Johan Martin Quist Painting Wilhelm Bendz Ditlev Blunck Emil Bærentzen Carl Dahl Dankvart Dreyer C. W. Eckersberg Frederik Theodor Kloss Johan Vilhelm Gertner Louis Gurlitt Hans Jørgen Hammer Constantin Hansen Georg Hilker H. G. F. Holm C. A. Jensen Albert Küchler Vilhelm Kyhn Christen Købke Emanuel Larsen Johan Lundbye Wilhelm Marstrand Adam August Müller Fritz Petzholdt Jørgen Roed Martinus Rørbye P. C. Skovgaard Jørgen Valentin Sonne Carl Frederik Sørensen Sculpture Herman Wilhelm Bissen Christen Christensen Hermann Ernst Freund Jens Adolf Jerichau Bertel Thorvaldsen Music Niels Gade Johan Peter Emilius Hartmann Friedrich Kuhlau Christoph Ernst Friedrich Weyse Performing arts August Bournonville Johanne Luise Heiberg Literature Hans Christian Andersen Jens Baggesen Ludvig Bødtcher Henrik Hertz Bernhard Severin Ingemann Adam Oehlenschläger Adolph Wilhelm Schack von Staffeldt Christian Winther Emil Aarestrup Philosophy and theology N. F. S. Grundtvig Søren Kierkegaard Poul Martin Møller Henrik Steffens Law and science Adam Wilhelm Hauch Peter Wilhelm Lund Rasmus Rask Joakim Frederik Schouw Anders Sandøe Ørsted Hans Christian Ørsted Administrators and patrons Frederik VI Christian VIII] Christian Ditlev Frederik Reventlow Jonas Collin Niels Laurits Høyen Knud Lyne Rahbek Ernst von Schimmelmann Just Mathias Thiele Christian Jürgensen Thomsen Venues Institutions Royal Academy of Fine Arts Royal Danish Theatre Kunstforeningen Sorø Academy Private venues Bakkehuset (Kamma Rahbek) C. A. Reitzel's Bookshop Nysø Manor Sophienholm (Friederike Brun) Sølyst (Charlotte Schimmelmann) « Age of Enlightenment Modern Breakthrough » Authority control databases International VIAF GND National United States France BnF data Artists ULAN RKD Artists KulturNav People Deutsche Biographie --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Christian Albrecht Jensen](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Albrecht_Jensen) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Albrecht_Jensen?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.