Michael Wening Der Bayerische Merian des Barock

Title

Michael Wening Der Bayerische Merian des Barock

Description

By Gertrud Stetter a book about Michael Wening, life and work of the Bavarian engraver and topographer on 64 pages. Süddeutscher Verlag Munich

c. 1964

Artist

Wening (1645-1718)

Michael Wening was a Bavarian engraver who is known for his many depictions of important places in the Bavaria of his day, including cityscapes and views of stately homes, castles and monasteries. The work has great historical value. Michael Wening was born on 11 July 1645 in Nuremberg, Bavaria. Wening left Nuremberg in the spring of 1668, and is first mentioned in Munich in December 1669, where he applied for work at the court as an engraver. At this time he converted from the Protestant to the Catholic church, perhaps because it was very hard for non-Catholics to find work in Munich. He married Anna Maria Mörl on 27 January 1671, and was given a permanent residence permit for Munich. In 1672 Wening was working part-time at the court as a quartermaster, arranging receptions and travel, and increasingly being called an engraver in court orders. By 1675 he was being called "court engraver". In the years that followed Wening undertook small commissions for a number of clients. He founded a publishing company in the late 1670s and for ten years issued an illustrated calendar. In 1680 Wening made a copper engraving of the fireworks display for the 18th birthday of Max Emanuel, the Elector of Bavaria. He now began to receive regular orders, particularly for engravings to illustrate the Elector's war victories. He made numerous scenes of battles in the wars against the Ottoman Empire, which was trying to expand into Europe. These have considerable historical value. During the War of the Spanish Succession (1701–1714) Bavaria was occupied by the Austrians, a disaster for Wening as court engraver of the exiled Wittelsbachs, while the general economic difficulties meant that Wening got few private commissions. Despite this, Wening continued to undertake his most significant work at his own cost. In his last years he lived in extreme poverty.