Christiane Vulpius (June 1, 1765 – June 6, 1816) was Goethe’s companion and later his wife. The side-profile drawing used as the basis for this silhouette was created around 1788/89 (shortly after they met) and was drawn by Goethe himself. The original is kept in the so-called “Christiane Room” at the Goethe House in Weimar.
Silhouettes were a popular form of portraiture during Goethe’s era, as photography did not yet exist. Goethe created numerous silhouettes of well-known contemporaries, but unfortunately, no silhouette of Christiane is known to exist.
This mini-series was created out of my connection to Weimar and my passion for both historical and contemporary portraits, in honor of Christiane’s 260th birthday in 2025.
