(Vienna 1812-1905) A view from Dorotheenbaude (mountain refuge) to the hills and forests near Grätz castle, signed and dated R. Alt 1845, watercolour on paper, 30 x 42 cm, mounted, unframed, (Hu)

According to tradition an old label Rud. Alt 1845, Marienbad 'Dorotheenbaude'. In Erinnerung an Dorothea Fürstin von Kurland, geborene Gräfin Medem, die diesen Aussichtspunkt für sich erkor." (In memory of Dorothea Duchess of Kurland, neé Countess Medem, who discovered this viewpoint for herself) on the reverse.Grätz Castle near Troppau was the property of the Counts Lichnowsky. In the early 19th century it was a centre of music culture and was visited by Beethoven and Liszt. Dorothea von Kurland visited the area on her frequent diplomatic missions. In the summer of 1845 Rudolf Alt travelled through Moravia and Silesia and passed by Grätz castle, to visit relatives. There he got to know his later wife Berta, who he married in 1846 in the town church of Troppau. The watercolour, whose landscape is framed by the architecture of the Baude (mountain refuge) is a telling example of the artist’s closeness to nature. Provenance: ex Künstlerhaus Vienna 1892, No. 360 and 429, and collection Thomba, to todays owners. Literature: Walter Koschatzky, Rudolf von Alt, Vienna 1976, No. 45/17 or 45/18.