Landscape painter Carl Philipp Weber
was born in Darmstadt, Germany. His parents were the musician
Carl Weber and his wife, Eleanore Weber. Carl Weber is believed
to be the older brother of the Romantic landscape painter Paul
Weber who worked in Philadelphia from 1849-1860.
The strict, refined style which characterizes
Carl Weber's landscapes can be attributed to his uncle, also named
Paul Weber (1823-1916), who was the renowned German landscape
painter under whom he studied in Darmstadt and Munich. Paul Weber
was also the teacher of famous landscape artists Thomas Moran
and Edward Lewis. Carl P.Weber continued his training under sculptor
and muralist August von Kreling in Nuremberg.
Although his artistic training occurred
in Germany, Carl Philipp was raised primarily in the United States
after he emigrated in 1853 to Germantown with his parents, musician
Carl Weber and his wife Eleanore Bonnet Weber.
Carl Philipp's early work was influenced
by the 19th century Romantic movement.
At the age of 30, Carl Philipp opened
his own studio in Philadelphia, and demonstrated his profound
admiration of nature by focusing exclusively on landscapes in
the German Romantic tradition. In Philadelphia, he was said to
have "few equals and no superiors" in the field of watercolor
painting. Many of his works suggest that he painted his large
canvases from sketches both produced in the field and from his
imagination.
Weber's early work shows the influence
of mid-19th century Romanticism, and his compositions are usually
delineated by the use of tonal painting, juxtaposing contrasting
sections of light and dark. Often, one area or object is highlighted,
and appears almost divinely illuminated, one of the key concepts
portrayed by the 19th century landscape painters, the pantheistic
idea of worshipping God through nature. For these painters, art
became a form of Divine worship, in which the artists are the
Priests who "preached" to the viewer silently, visually,
through their paintings.
Weber's talent as a landscape painter
gained him popularity and fame, which was documented in a Philadelphia
newspaper clipping from 1895:
"C. Philipp Weber, Artist No. 1334 Chestnut St). . . Fifteen
years ago he opened a studio on Chestnut Street, and he has since
achieved national reputation, standing today in the front ranks
of our most accomplished American artists. He has several pictures
in the [Pennsylvania] Academy of Fine Arts, and many beautiful
specimen of his genius and talent adorn the mansions of our most
refined and wealthy families . . . the most expert critics have
pronounced his work perfect, and among his brother artists his
productions are highly spoken of . . . "
Carl Philipp Weber's paintings were
exhibited at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts from 1876-1891
and at the National Academy of Design in New York in 1880 and
1881. He was a member of the Philadelphia Artists Fund Society.
