The Czernin collection of Old Master paintings

Because of his diversified interests in contemporary music, literature and the fine arts Johann Rudolph Count Czernin of Chudenitz (1757-1845) represents one of the highly distinguished personalities of cultural life in Austria and Bohemia between 1777 and his death. In the art world of the Habsburg Empire Czernin`s significance lies on the one hand in his private role while commissioning and sponsoring works of art, on the other hand in his official position as Oberstkämmerer (Imperial Treasurer) at the imperial court. Outstanding Old Master paintings, from Rembrandt ("Old Woman Praying"), Titian ("Portrait of Doge Andrea Gritti") to Vermeer ("The Art of Painting"), indicate the bohemian aristocrat`s high standard of art appreciation and his eye for quality. From 1795 onwards the Viennese Czernin palace in the 1st district (Wallnerstr. 3) houses one of the most prestigious collections of Old Master paintings worldwide, which furthermore, according to the explicit wishes of its owner, is put on public view right after 1800. Prague`s artistic life owes the foundation of the socalled Gesellschaft Patriotischer Kunstfreunde (society of patriotic artlovers) to a certain extent to Czernin`s full support; successively Czernin offered contemporary and Old Master paintings on loan to the society. Johann Rudolph Czernin is given credit as collector in a great number of works on Old Master paintings, foremost in those on "his" Vermeer ("The Art of Painting", now at the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna). As astonishing as this may be, not a single monograph exists on Czernin`s life, his impact on the arts as a private person and in his official position at court, and still more astonishing, no scientific research was done so far concerning the history of his Old Master painting collection. The collection of around 350 Old Master paintings was dispersed after World War II and no longer exists, with the exception of the 70 works purchased by the Land Salzburg, protected as historical heritage, and presented by the Residenzgalerie Salzburg. The history of this sale has not yet been investigated, either. The aim of this scientific research project is to study relevant aspects of the history of the Czernin collection of paintings: - provenance: a) history of Johann Rudoph`s acquisitions - the reverse side documentation of the 70 artworks at the Residenzgalerie Salzburg plays a significant role in this part of the research b) history of the collection`s dispersal after World War II - Studies on the Viennese art market between 1800 and 1820 based on the results of Czernin`s acquisitions - Studies on the different modalities of the Czernin collection`s presentation between 1820-1945, including the reconstruction of the specific system developed for hanging the paintings - Documentation of the paintings restorations in the 19th century; the most exceptional archival material on this subject in the Czernin family archive allows for a reconstruction of the restorations commissioned by Johann Rudolph. The result of the submitted application is the fundamental and required basis to initiate further detailed studies in art history and cultural history of Bohemia and Austria - especially at the Viennese court, between the late 18th and the middle of the 19th century. The eminent importance of this basic research lies in the outstanding quality of Johann Rudolph Czernin`s Old Master collection of paintings.

The projects aim was the first scientific research of the Czernin collection of Old Master paintings in Vienna. With the exception of 71 paintings (Dutch, Italian and French works of the 17th century) now on display in the Residenzgalerie Salzburg, this important Viennese collection of approximately 350 works of art was dispersed worldwide after WWII. For this research the following archives were consulted: family archive/Jind?ich?v Hradec, National Archive/Prague, the Rijksbureau voor Kunsthistorische Documentatie/The Hague, auction catalogs, the Bundesdenkmalamt-Archive/Vienna and several private archives. Archival research disclosed a substantial part of the paintings present location and/or the dates of sale. Research implies the history of the purchase of the collection, its presentation and restoration under Johann Rudolph Czernin and his heirs and its dispersal. Some new results of the scientific project were already published:- Juffinger, Roswitha, ed., Residenzgalerie Salzburg, Gesamtverzeichnis der Gemälde, 2 vol., Salzburg, 2010.- Juffinger, Roswitha, Schreibzimmer meines Vaters zu Wien 1835, Ein Aquarell mit der Wiedergabe des Schreibzimmers von Johann Rudolph Graf Czernin von Chudenitz, in: Juffinger, 2010, pp. 491525.- Juffinger, Roswitha, Ein Rembrandt für die Czerninsche Gemäldegalerie Die Ankäufe Johann Rudolph Czernins aus der Gemäldesammlung des Armand François Louis de Mestral de Saint Saphorin, in: Juffinger, 2010, pp. 461489.- Walderdorff, Imma, Die Czerninsche Gemäldegalerie in Wien unter Eugen Czernin-Chudenitz (18921955), Das Schicksal der Privatsammlung nach dem Ausscheiden der Malkunst von Jan Vermeer, in: Hehenberger, Susanne und Monika Löscher, ed., Die verkaufte Malkunst, Jan Vermeers Gemälde im 20. Jahrhundert, =Band 4 der Schriftenreihe der Kommission für Provenienzforschung, Wien-Köln-Weimar, 2012, pp. 241262).Currently the Czernin paintings are spread throughout the world (e.g. Washington DC/USA, National Gallery), in private ownership and on the art market. The forthcoming publication of a catalogue raisonné, based on K. Wilczeks catalogue of 1936, includes the following data: documentation on the sales (auction, seller, date of sale, buyer), technical data, new attributions, present location, documentation on the restoration-measures. Hitherto mostly unpublished photographs taken around 1900 by J. Löwy, that is, not included in Wilczeks catalogue, shall be an integral part of the catalogue raisonné.This research constitutes an indispensable basis to initiate further detailed studies in a series of scientific fields, such as art history, cultural history, economic and social history of Bohemia, the Viennese court between 1800 and 1846 and methods of the display of paintings in galleries between the late 18th and the year 2000. Furthermore it offers valuable information on the art market between the late 18th century and WW II. The aim to investigate the provenance of the Czernin collection therefore constitutes an eminent focus of interest on an international level.