Joseph Anton Koch 

Born. 27.07.1768  in Elbigenalp, Austria
Died. 12.01.1839 in Rome, Italy

Austrian painter of Neoclassicism and later the German Romantic movement

About the artist

After being recommended by his Bishop, Koch was taught at the Karlsschule in Stuttgart, which was well-known for being a strict military academy. He ran away in 1791, making his way through France and Switzerland. After arriving in Rome in 1795 he became a close friend to the painter Asmus Jacob Carstens.

Koch developed as a landscape painter at the turn of the 19th century. In Rome, he embraced a new type of landscape painting, changing the classical works of Poussin and Lorrain with more rugged landscapes. As he was not making much money from his work, and not being happy about the French invasion, he moved to Vienna in 1812 to continue his work. He stayed in Vienna until 1815 putting his new variants into his work.

After returning to Rome, he attracted special attention for the German artists who were influenced by his creative style and personality.

Koch was a poor man when he died in Rome; and was buried in the Teutonic Cemetery in Vatican City.