The annals of art history are rich with figures who, though perhaps not household names like Michelangelo or Rembrandt, played indispensable roles in documenting and shaping our understanding of specific eras. Salomon Kleiner, an 18th-century German draughtsman and engraver, stands as one such pivotal artist. His meticulous and prolific output, primarily focused on architectural vedute (views) and garden designs, offers an unparalleled visual record of the Baroque splendors of Vienna, Augsburg, and other Central European locales. His work is not merely illustrative; it is a testament to the era's aesthetic ideals, its patrons' ambitions, and the sophisticated printmaking culture that disseminated these images across Europe.
Distinguishing the Artist: A Necessary Clarification
Before delving into the life and work of the celebrated engraver, it is pertinent to address a potential point of confusion. The name "Salomon Klein" also belongs to a notable Austrian ophthalmologist born in 1845. This Dr. Klein was a distinguished professor at the University of Vienna, known for his contributions to eye care and medical literature. However, the subject of this discourse is Salomon Kleiner (often spelled with an 'e' before the 'r'), born significantly earlier, around 1700 or 1703, in Augsburg, and who died in Vienna in 1761. His domain was not medicine but the visual arts, specifically the intricate and demanding craft of architectural drawing and engraving. This distinction is crucial for appreciating the unique contributions of the artist Salomon Kleiner to the Baroque period.
Early Life and Artistic Formation in Augsburg
Salomon Kleiner's journey as an artist began in Augsburg, a Free Imperial City renowned as a major center for printing, publishing, and the arts, particularly goldsmithing and engraving. Born into a world where craftsmanship and artistic skill were highly valued, Kleiner's exact birth year is debated by scholars, with sources suggesting either 1700 or March 4, 1703. Regardless of the precise date, his formative years were spent in this vibrant artistic hub.
His formal training was under the tutelage of Johann August Corvinus (1683–1738), a respected Augsburg engraver. Corvinus himself was part of a lineage of artists and craftsmen, and his workshop would have provided Kleiner with a thorough grounding in the techniques of drawing, perspective, and the various methods of copperplate engraving. This master-apprentice relationship was typical of the era, ensuring the transmission of skills and artistic traditions. Augsburg, with its numerous publishing houses, such as that of Jeremias Wolff (1663–1724) and his successors, offered ample opportunities for aspiring engravers. Wolff's establishment was particularly influential, producing a vast array of prints, from portraits and religious scenes to maps and architectural views, catering to a broad European market. Kleiner's early exposure to this environment undoubtedly shaped his precision and his understanding of the commercial and documentary potential of printmaking.
The Call to Vienna: Documenting Imperial Splendor
Around 1720, or shortly thereafter, Salomon Kleiner relocated to Vienna, the magnificent capital of the Habsburg Empire. This move marked a significant turning point in his career. Vienna, under Emperor Charles VI, was a city undergoing extensive Baroque transformation, with opulent palaces, churches, and gardens being constructed, reflecting the empire's power and cultural aspirations. Architects like Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach (1656–1723) and Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt (1668–1745) were reshaping the urban landscape, creating masterpieces that cried out for visual documentation.
Kleiner's talent for precise and detailed architectural rendering quickly found favor. He was not a painter in the traditional sense, creating grand canvases, but rather a specialist draughtsman whose drawings served as the basis for engravings. His meticulous approach was perfectly suited to capturing the intricate details of Baroque facades, the elaborate layouts of formal gardens, and the bustling life of the imperial city.
One of his earliest major undertakings in Vienna was his contribution to the series of city views titled Vera et accurata delineatio omnium templorum et coenobiorum quae tam in caesarea urbe ac sede Vienna Austriae, quam in suburbiis eius reperiuntur (True and Accurate Depiction of all Churches and Monasteries Found in the Imperial City and Residence of Vienna, Austria, as well as in its Suburbs). This ambitious project, published in parts by Johann Andreas Pfeffel the Elder (1674–1748) between 1724 and 1737, aimed to provide a comprehensive visual survey of Vienna's ecclesiastical architecture. Kleiner was a principal draughtsman for this series, and his drawings were engraved by various artists, including Pfeffel himself, Johann Georg Pintz, and Hieronymus Sperling. These views, such as his depiction of the Neuer Markt (New Market) from 1724, are invaluable for their detailed portrayal of the city's appearance in the early 18th century, complete with figures and daily activities that animate the architectural settings.
The Belvedere Palace: A Monumental Commission
Perhaps Salomon Kleiner's most famous and enduring achievement is the extensive series of engravings depicting the Belvedere Palace complex in Vienna. This magnificent summer residence of Prince Eugene of Savoy (1663–1736), one of the most brilliant military commanders and art patrons of his time, was designed by Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt. The Belvedere, consisting of the Upper and Lower Palaces, extensive formal gardens, an orangery, and a menagerie, was a jewel of Baroque architecture and landscape design.
Between 1731 and 1740, a ten-part series of folio volumes titled Residences mémorables de l'incomparable heros de nôtre siecle ou Representation exacte des edifices et jardins de Son Altesse Serenissime Monseigneur LE PRINCE EUGENE FRANCOIS Duc de Savoye et de Piemont (Memorable Residences of the Incomparable Hero of Our Century, or, Exact Representation of the Buildings and Gardens of His Serene Highness Prince Eugene Francis, Duke of Savoy and Piedmont) was published in Augsburg by the heirs of Jeremias Wolff. Salomon Kleiner was the principal draughtsman for this monumental project, and his drawings were engraved by a team of skilled artists, including his former master Johann August Corvinus, Johann Georg Klinger, Jacob Gottlieb Thelott, and others.
Kleiner's views of the Belvedere are remarkable for their comprehensiveness and accuracy. He depicted the palaces from various exterior viewpoints, showcasing Hildebrandt's architectural genius. He meticulously rendered the interiors, including the grand halls, galleries, and Prince Eugene's famous library and art collections. The formal gardens, with their parterres, fountains, sculptures, and grottoes, were captured in sweeping perspectives and detailed plans. Even the menagerie, with its exotic animals, was illustrated. These prints not only celebrated Prince Eugene's magnificent estate but also served as a powerful tool for disseminating its design and splendor across Europe, influencing garden design and architectural taste. The level of detail in these engravings provides an invaluable resource for understanding the original state of the Belvedere, which has undergone various alterations over the centuries. Artists like Bernardo Bellotto (1721–1780), nephew of Canaletto, would later paint Vienna, but Kleiner's prints offer a different, more systematic and encyclopedic, visual documentation.
Artistic Style and Working Methods
Salomon Kleiner's artistic style is characterized by its clarity, precision, and an almost scientific approach to architectural representation. He was a master of perspective, able to convey the scale and spatial complexity of large buildings and extensive gardens. His lines are crisp and controlled, ensuring that every architectural detail, from sculptural ornamentation to window tracery, is clearly legible.
While his primary aim was accuracy, Kleiner's views are not sterile technical drawings. He often included staffage – small figures of people and animals – to animate his scenes, provide a sense of scale, and suggest the function and life of the spaces he depicted. These figures, whether courtiers strolling in a garden, merchants in a marketplace, or carriages passing by, add a layer of social historical interest to his work.
Kleiner typically worked by creating detailed drawings on site. These drawings, often in pen and ink with wash, would then be transferred to copper plates by engravers. The process of engraving was laborious and required great skill to translate the nuances of a drawing into incised lines that could hold ink for printing. Kleiner's close collaboration with engravers like Corvinus and Pfeffel was essential to the quality of the final prints. Sometimes, Kleiner himself may have undertaken the engraving, but more often he provided the master drawings.
His work can be situated within the broader European tradition of veduta art, which flourished in the 18th century. While Italian artists like Giovanni Antonio Canal (Canaletto, 1697–1768) and Giovanni Battista Piranesi (1720–1778) are perhaps the most famous exponents of this genre, Kleiner represents a distinct Germanic and Central European manifestation. Unlike Piranesi's often dramatic and romanticized views of Roman ruins, Kleiner's approach was more documentary and focused on contemporary structures. His work shares affinities with other topographical artists of the period, such as Friedrich Bernhard Werner (1690–1776), who also produced extensive series of city views across Europe, though Kleiner's focus was often more detailed and architecturally specific.
Commissions Beyond Vienna: The Schönborn Patronage and Augsburg Works
While Vienna was central to Kleiner's career, his talents were also sought by other prominent patrons. He undertook significant work for the powerful Schönborn family, who were influential ecclesiastical princes and avid builders. For Lothar Franz von Schönborn, Archbishop-Elector of Mainz and Prince-Bishop of Bamberg, and his nephew Friedrich Karl von Schönborn, Prince-Bishop of Bamberg and Würzburg, Kleiner documented several of their magnificent residences.
These included views of Schloss Pommersfelden (also known as Schloss Weißenstein), a vast Baroque palace in Franconia, and Schloss Favorite near Mainz, a summer palace and garden complex. His depictions of these estates, similar in scope and detail to the Belvedere series, further solidified his reputation as the preeminent architectural illustrator of his time. These commissions often involved travel, allowing Kleiner to study and record a wider range of architectural styles and garden designs.
Kleiner also maintained connections with his native Augsburg. He contributed illustrations to various publications emanating from the city's presses. For instance, around 1727/28, he produced drawings of Augsburg Cathedral, showcasing his ability to render Gothic architecture with the same precision he applied to Baroque structures. His involvement in projects like the Representation des animaux de la menagerie de S.A.S. Monseigneur le Prince Eugene Francois de Savoye et de Piemont, which included engravings of exotic animals from Prince Eugene's collection (some based on Kleiner's drawings and engraved by artists like Johann Balthasar Probst), demonstrates a versatility that extended to natural history illustration, a field also burgeoning in the 18th century with artists like Maria Sibylla Merian (1647-1717) having paved the way.
The Representation of Sacred Architecture
Beyond palaces and gardens, Kleiner also dedicated considerable effort to depicting ecclesiastical buildings. His work for the Vera et accurata delineatio series in Vienna has already been mentioned. This focus on churches and monasteries was significant, as these structures were often at the forefront of architectural innovation and lavish decoration during the Baroque era.
He documented iconic Viennese churches designed by Fischer von Erlach, such as the Karlskirche (St. Charles Church), and by Hildebrandt. His views captured not only the imposing facades but often also the richly adorned interiors, with their elaborate altars, pulpits, and ceiling frescoes. These prints served multiple purposes: they celebrated the piety and wealth of the patrons, provided visual records for art historians and architects, and offered devotional imagery for a wider public.
For example, his drawings for the views of the Alserkirche (Church of the Holy Trinity of the Trinitarians) and the Schwarzspanierkirche in Vienna, engraved by others, contribute to our understanding of these important religious sites. His ability to convey the spatial grandeur and decorative richness of these interiors was remarkable. The depiction of the Kapuzinergruft (Capuchin Crypt or Imperial Crypt) in Vienna, the burial site of the Habsburg emperors, also features among his works, highlighting its solemn importance.
The Technical and Commercial Aspects of Kleiner's Print Series
The production of Kleiner's extensive print series was a significant commercial undertaking. Publishers like Pfeffel in Vienna and the Wolff heirs in Augsburg invested considerable capital in these projects, which involved paying the draughtsman (Kleiner), the team of engravers, the cost of copper plates, paper, and printing. The resulting prints were often sold as individual sheets or bound into luxurious folio volumes, marketed to wealthy collectors, aristocrats, architects, and libraries across Europe.
The success of these ventures depended on the quality of the images and the appeal of the subjects. Kleiner's reputation for accuracy and elegance was a key selling point. The prints were not just pretty pictures; they were valuable documents, sources of inspiration for architects and garden designers, and status symbols for their owners. The inclusion of titles and lengthy descriptions in multiple languages (often Latin, German, and French) broadened their international appeal.
The collaborative nature of 18th-century printmaking is evident in Kleiner's oeuvre. While he was the creative force behind the initial drawings, the final product was the result of many hands. Engravers such as Johann Georg Klinger, Georg Daniel Heumann, and members of the Probst family of engravers in Augsburg, all played roles in translating his visions onto copper. This system allowed for a relatively rapid and widespread dissemination of images, a crucial aspect of Baroque visual culture. The influence of earlier printmakers who specialized in architectural and topographical views, such as Wenceslaus Hollar (1607-1677) or Matthäus Merian the Elder (1593-1650), can be seen as part of the tradition upon which Kleiner built.
Later Career and Continued Productivity
Salomon Kleiner remained active and productive throughout his career. Even after the death of major patrons like Prince Eugene, the demand for his skills continued. He was appointed engineer to the Elector of Mainz in 1746, a position that likely involved architectural and surveying duties, reflecting the practical applications of his drawing skills.
His later works continued to showcase his mastery. He produced views of Mainz and its surroundings, further expanding his geographical scope. The consistency of quality in his output, maintained over several decades, is a testament to his diligence and artistic integrity. He continued to collaborate with Augsburg publishers, ensuring his work reached a wide audience.
The artistic landscape was gradually changing during Kleiner's later years. The Rococo style, a lighter and more intimate offshoot of the Baroque, was gaining popularity. While Kleiner's fundamental style remained rooted in the High Baroque tradition of clarity and order, his later works might show subtle adaptations or a focus on subjects that lent themselves to the evolving tastes. However, his core contribution remained the precise and elegant documentation of architectural and garden design.
Legacy and Historical Significance
Salomon Kleiner died in Vienna on July 25, 1761. He left behind a vast body of work that constitutes an invaluable historical archive. Many of the buildings and gardens he depicted have since been altered, damaged, or destroyed. His prints, therefore, often provide the most accurate, and sometimes the only, visual record of their original appearance. For architectural historians, garden historians, and urban planners, Kleiner's work is an indispensable primary source.
His influence extended beyond mere documentation. By disseminating images of the latest architectural and garden designs, his prints played a role in shaping taste and influencing building projects elsewhere in Europe. Architects and patrons could study these detailed representations to understand new trends and adapt them to their own purposes. The clarity and precision of his style set a standard for architectural illustration.
Today, Kleiner's prints are highly sought after by collectors and are held in major museums and libraries worldwide, including the Albertina in Vienna, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, and the British Museum in London. Exhibitions of his work continue to draw attention to his skill and the historical importance of his oeuvre. His depictions of the Belvedere, for instance, are fundamental to any study of that iconic palace complex.
In the broader context of art history, Salomon Kleiner occupies a specific but significant niche. He was not a revolutionary innovator in the mold of a Caravaggio or a Picasso, but rather a master craftsman who perfected a particular genre of art – the architectural veduta – and used it to create a lasting record of his time. His dedication to accuracy, combined with his artistic sensibility, ensured that his works are more than just topographical records; they are elegant and evocative portrayals of Baroque civilization at its zenith. His contribution is akin to that of other great view-makers, such as Giuseppe Vasi (1710-1782) in Rome, who similarly documented their cities with meticulous care, providing a legacy that transcends their own lifetimes.
Conclusion: The Enduring Vision of Salomon Kleiner
Salomon Kleiner's career coincided with a period of extraordinary architectural and cultural flourishing in Central Europe. As a draughtsman and engraver, he became the foremost visual chronicler of this era's achievements. His meticulous views of Vienna's palaces, churches, and public spaces, his comprehensive documentation of Prince Eugene's Belvedere, and his depictions of the Schönborn residences and other sites, all contribute to a rich and detailed portrait of the Baroque world.
His work stands as a testament to the power of printmaking to disseminate knowledge, celebrate achievement, and preserve memory. Through his collaboration with skilled engravers and enterprising publishers, Kleiner's vision reached a wide audience, influencing taste and providing an invaluable resource for future generations. As an art historian, one recognizes in Salomon Kleiner not just a skilled technician, but an artist whose dedication to his craft has provided us with an irreplaceable window onto the splendors of the 18th century. His legacy is etched in copper and printed on paper, a durable and eloquent record of a world of unparalleled architectural grandeur.
