Background
Bloch was born in Copenhagen, Denmark, on May 23, 1834. He was the son of Joergen Peter Bloch, a merchant, and Henriette Weitzmann.
Denmark
Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts.
Bloch was born in Copenhagen, Denmark, on May 23, 1834. He was the son of Joergen Peter Bloch, a merchant, and Henriette Weitzmann.
Carl Bloch's parents expected him to work as an officer in the Navy. This, however, never happened, as the young man was only interested in drawing and painting, and was going to become an artist. In January 1849 his parents eventually allowed him to draw in his free time in the evenings at the Royal Danish Academy of Art. Bloch went on his first study-trip to Jyderup, Denmark, in 1853. In 1855, Carl Bloch started to attend the Royal Danish Academy of Art. There on August 1, 1859, the artist received a travel grant. This grant allowed him to visit Holland, France and Italy. During his trip, he was accompanied by his close friend and fellow artist, Anton Dorph.
From 1859 to 1866 Bloch resided in Rome, which served as his "home base". Here he was inspired by the works of the Old Italian masters, so it was a significant period of his life during which he produced magnificent paintings. Being a genre painter, Carl Bloch was greatly interested in Italian genre and folklore paintings.
Carl Bloch's first real success came after the exhibition Prometheus Unbound in Copenhagen in 1865. After the death of his wife, the artist was depressed, although he managed to finish the decoration of the ceremonial hall at the University of Copenhagen. Later he was commissioned to paint 23 artworks for the King's Chapel at Frederiksborg Palace. He produced all the scenes from the life of Christ. His paintings have become very popular as illustrations. The original works, created during 1865-1879, can be found at Frederiksborg Palace. His eight altarpieces are now at Holbaek, Odense, Ugerloese, and Copenhagen in Denmark, as well as Loederup, Hoerup, and Landskrona in Sweden.
By 1870, Bloch created a number of portraits. In the 1880s he depicted major officials and cultural figures in his works. In addition, he also produced portraits of his family members and close friends as well as three self-portraits.
Besides, Carl Bloch served as a professor at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts since 1871. From 1888 to 1890 he held the post of a vice director at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts.
Raising of Lazarus
Jesus and the Samaritan Woman
Christian II imprisoned in the tower at Sønderborg castle
Gethsemane
Wedding at Cana
Transfiguration of Jesus
Christ with Thorns
Resurrection of Christ
Samson and the Philistines (Samson in the Threadmill)
Jesus Tempted
Jesus casting out the money changers at the temple
Suffer the Children
The Sermon on the Mount
The Annunciation
In a Roman Osteria
The Last Supper
Christ and Child
Christus Colsulator
Adoration of the Shepherds
The Artist's Parents, Mr. and Mrs. Bloch in Their Sitting Room
The Baptism of Christ
The Burial
Christ on the Cross
The Denial of Peter
Healing of the Blind Man
The Holy Night
A Kitchen (Et køkkenbord)
Landscape from Hellebæk
The Liberation of Prometheus (preliminary study)
Old People
The Shepherds and the Angel
Woman at her Toilette
The Woman with the Sparrows
A Young Girl Knocking at the Fisherman's Window
In 1865 Bloch became a member of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts.
Quotes from others about the person
Sophus Michaelis: "Denmark has lost the artist that indisputably was the greatest among the living."
Karl Madsen: "If there is an Elysium, where the giant, rich, warm and noble artist souls meet, there Carl Bloch will sit among the noblest of them all!"
Carl Bloch met his future wife, Alma Trepka, while in Rome. There they married on May 31, 1868. The couple was happily married until Alma Trepka's early death in 1886. Their marriage produced eight children: five sons, Paul, Michael, Emanuel, Jørgen A., Henrik Benedict, and three daughters, Ida Alma, Clara Emilie Rose, Alma Marguerite.