Johannes Veit

John Veit ( before baptism 1810 Jonas Veit; born March 2, 1790 in Berlin, † January 18, 1854 in Rome ) was a German history painter. He was the brother of the more significant Philipp Veit (1793-1877) and of Jewish origin, but not interested in Judaism. Since 1811 he lived and worked in Rome, where he especially Friedrich Overbeck joined.

Life

Jonas Veit, was born on March 2, 1790 in Berlin, the son of the banker Simon Veit and his wife Brendel, née Mendelssohn. After the parents separated, Veit stayed with his father in Berlin, shortly after he entered a business apprenticeship with Abraham Mendelssohn in Hamburg. Afterwards, however, he turned to painting, which he attended the Academy of Fine Arts in Dresden under Frederick Matthai.

On July 26, 1810 Veit converted to the Catholic faith and took the name John. End of this year, he moved to Vienna as an assistant. In February 1811 he moved to Rome, although he had initially planned to move to Paris. The occasion was the work of Gottlieb Schick's been that Veit very fascinated. Now he befriended in Rome with Friedrich Overbeck and lost interest in Schick.

After his father died, married Flora Veit Ries, who also became a Catholic later. After his marriage he returned to Rome, where he associated more with Overbeck, and finally died on 18 January 1854.

Veit was a slow- working artists with high demands on himself However, his claims were higher than what he liked to realize. Among his works of preeminence is a representation of the Adoration of the Shepherds in the St. Hedwig's Cathedral, Berlin, forth.