(Vienna 1771-1846 Felixdorf)
Vue de Vienne, prise du Belvedere, titled, signed Wigand p., watercolour on paper fixed to cardboard support, 16,3 x 26,4 cm, mounted, framed, (Hu)

A collector’s label on the reverse: Collection Pfohl, Graz, No. 274. Balthasar Wigand was a painter who received fame through his detailed miniature views. The son of a Viennese coffee roaster Balthasar Wigand was born in 1770.
After he had studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna he dedicated himself to miniature painting, in which he achieved a certain perfection over the years. He specialised in the small format and particularly made political events (festive processions) of the Napoleonic era, vedutas with staffages and landscapes of his home country his most favorite subjects. His pictures soon met topographical interest due to their accuracy. His watercolours and gouaches enjoyed great social reputation and his works were very much sought after. Due to the great demand of his works he opened a workshop where he also decorated everyday items such as cases and cassettes with miniature views. Although his work was praised among collectors, his work fell temporarily into oblivion after his death in 1846. The Wien Museum hosted the first commemorative exhibtion of the artist in 1977 which provoked renewed interest in the pictures of Wigand.