Miethke's Beginnings Originally known as Miethke & Wawra, the venture started as a collaboration between Miethke and Carl Josef Wawra, focusing on art publishing with an emphasis on editing photographs, reproductions, and printed works. Over time, they transitioned into hosting art auctions in Vienna, before eventually moving into art gallery management as the art market in Austria expanded. Carl Josef Wawra and Miethke went their separate ways around 1874. In Vienna, Miethke, as the
sole proprietor of the gallery, established the 'Galerie H.O. Miethke'. The gallery moved from Plankengasse 6 to its second location at the corner of Neur Markt 13 in 1882. Miethke's aim was to enhance the Viennese public's appreciation of art, fostering both the pleasure of art enjoyment and the pride of art ownership. An 1888 exhibition at the Parisian gallery featured the artistic estate of
Hans Makart and published a catalogue of his art and antiques collection. The gallery's owner, H.O. Miethke, purchased the Palace of Nákó (now
Palais Eskeles) at Dorotheergasse 11. In 1895, he commissioned the Viennese architecture firm
Kupka & Orglmeister to complete a redesign of the palace to house Galerie Miethke. Galerie Miethke was featured in the 'Swiss Review' (), a Swiss magazine, when the new venue was opened to the general public in 1896. It contained masterpieces by
Meissonier,
Troyon,
Roybet,
Corot,
Leempoels,
Pradilla,
Rumpler, Molitor, Giacomo Favretto,
Achenbach,
Stuck,
Gabriël,
Max,
Grützner,
Burne-Jones, and more.
Franz von Lenbach also had his own home in the upper rooms, which were decorated with Venetian ceilings, wallpaper, and draperies. There was a
Hans Makart room with a Makart bust created by Tilgner. Another room held a genuine painting by
Peter Paul Rubens that was rediscovered, bearing the name "Mars and Venus." The painting was done in Rubens' series for
Marie de' Medici. A stormy landscape by
Jan van Goyen, a male portrait by
Sir Joshua Reynolds, a dune landscape by
Salomon van Ruysdael, and an artwork by
Gerard ter Borch were all shown at the Miethke Gallery. By 1896, the Viennese gallery was well-regarded among Austrian art
salons, with its space in the courtyard of the former Palais Náko on Dorotheergasse. On 17 October 1896, the Miethke Gallery hosted an exhibition of a collection of about 300 pieces by Viennese landscape artist
Robert Russ, which included finished paintings, studies, pencil sketches, watercolors, and gouache works. Some pieces were contemporary creations, while others were rumored to date back to his days studying under the German artist
Albert Zimmermann. The gallery hosted its exhibition of
Viktor Tilgner's estate from November 28 until the auction on 1 December 1896. During that year, H.O. Miethke also enriched the gallery's holdings by acquiring
Arnold Böcklin's "God the Father and Adam in Paradise" for 40,000 marks. The gallery displayed over 200 works by Rumpler, the Viennese Academy professor, encompassing oil paintings, watercolors, and drawings. The Austrian emperor
Franz Joseph I notably visited the Rumpler Exhibition at the gallery on 14 May 1897 to view the paintings. He took interest in Rumpler's individual works, especially the landscape painting "Area near Mies in Bohemia", the "Peasant Types from Bohemia", the portrait of the artist's mother, and the "Parade in Tachau". Galerie Miethke in December 1897 curated an exhibition that included all the artworks that German painter
Franz von Stuck had produced in recent times. The Franz Stuck exhibition included the following paintings: "The Fall of Man", "Paradise Lost", "Procession of Bacchantes", "The Bad Conscience", "Sin", and a portrait of
Luitpold, Prince Regent of Bavaria. The works were displayed at the gallery before being auctioned as private property.
Moll's Creative Direction In 1904, H.O. Miethke retired from the business, and the gallery changed ownership twice, from Hans Weidenbusch to Paul Bacher. The new owner, Bacher, was a close friend of Austrian painter
Gustav Klimt. That year,
Carl Moll, an Austrian painter of the
Vienna Secession, was installed as artistic consultant and organized significant exhibitions. Between November and December 1905, the gallery at Dorotheergasse 11 hosted an exhibition showcasing art by modern Munich painters. The first floor of Galerie Miethke was filled with the works of artists like Franz Stuck,
Fritz von Uhde, Adolf Hengeler,
Julius and Wilhelm Diez, Hans Harburger, Fritz Hegenbart, Walter Geffcken, Josef Willroider,
Nikolaos Gyzis, Count Freiburg, Hans Reinhold Lichtenberger,
Gino Parin, Carl Friedrich, Benno Becker, among others. The gallery launched a new business venue at the
Graben in Vienna's
Innere Stadt on 3 December 1905 through an exhibition titled "Die Jungen". It was the first time the
Wiener Werkstätte presented to a local audience, featuring major works by Josef Hoffmann,
Koloman Moser, and
Carl Otto Czeschka. In January 1906, the gallery under Moll's creative direction, held an exhibition of 45 works by
Vincent van Gogh at Galerie Miethke's Dorotheergasse venue. From March to April 1906, an exhibition of the works of Austrian painter
Carl Schuch was hosted at Graben 17. Russian painter
Nicholas Roerich was showcased at the location from May to June 1906.
The Haberfeld Era After Bacher's death, his wife, Emma-Bacher-Paulick took over ownership of the gallery. Dr. Hugo Haberfeld, an art historian, journalist, and writer from Vienna, started co-managing Galerie Miethke with Carl Moll in 1907. Galerie Miethke hosted the estate auction of Austrian painter
Wilhelm Bernatzik on 17 February 1907 at Dorotheergasse 11 and Graben 17. During March and April 1907, an exhibition featured works by the French artist
Paul Gauguin. The gallery hosted an exhibition of Spanish painter
Francisco Goya's art from March to April 1908, organized by Moll. From November to December 1908, French artist
Honoré Daumier's work was exhibited at the Galerie Miethke. An exhibition of works by French painter
Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec from the collection of Alfred Walter Heymel was notably arranged in autumn of 1909. Haberfeld and Moll worked together to showcase
Édouard Manet and
Claude Monet in 1910. That year, Austrian artist
Koloman Moser exhibited 53 works in a solo exhibition. The collaboration of Moll and Haberfeld ended by 1912 due to professional discord, leading to Moll's exit. The exhibition catalogue was created by the Paris-based art critic
Adolphe Basler. From January to February 1912, Miethke Gallery held exhibitions of French Masters, including Renoir, Pissarro, Manet, Sisley, Courbet, Cezanne, and D'Espagnat. From April to May 1912, the works of painters and sculptors from the
Berlin Secession were exhibited at Galerie Miethke. In February of the following year, the gallery hosted an exhibition of the private collection belonging to
Oskar Reichel. In 1914, the gallery published various exhibition catalogues, including
Pablo Picasso who exhibited from February to March, and
André Derain from March to April, which was followed by
Lea von Littrow. Miethke Gallery closed in 1915, with Haberfeld buying it from Emma-Bacher-Paulick in 1917 to become the sole proprietor. Haberfeld directed the gallery until he relocated to
Paris,
France with his family in 1938. As of 1 October 1940, Galerie Miethke was no longer listed in the
commercial register. ==See also==