Born in
Magdeburg, the son of bookbinder Friedrich Christian Sieg, he studied painting at the
Academy of Arts in Berlin and at the provincial art school in Magdeburg. From 1808 he studied with
Franz Ludwig Catel in Paris, where he also took classes in the painting school of
Jacques-Louis David. From 1813 to 1816 he lived in Italy, mainly Rome, where he helped found the
Künstlerhilfskasse and worked alongside artists
Peter von Cornelius,
Johann Friedrich Overbeck and
Wilhelm von Schadow. Except for the years 1819–21, when he worked in Berlin, he spent the rest of his life in his hometown, working primarily as a lithographer and
portraitist. In Magdeburg, he created numerous portraits of members from various families as well as portraits of clergymen and politicians. Among his better works was an
altarpiece depicting the laying of Christ's body at the foot of the cross by
Joseph of Arimathea (
Niederlegung des Leichnams Christi am Fuße des Kreuzes durch Joseph von Arimathia, 1818) for the church of St. Sebastian in Magdeburg. A number of Sieg's works are in the collections of the Kulturhistorisches Museum in Magdeburg. He died in
Magdeburg at the age of 60. == References ==