Jülich Museum Acquires Two Schirmer Oil Studies from 1839

The Museum in Jülich, birthplace of Johann Wilhelm Schirmer, has acquired two of his finest oil studies from his 1839 Italian journey. The works, painted near Olevano on September 5 and 10, 1839, capture the Sabine Mountains and Sacco Valley with a distinctive blend of Italian light and German nostalgia. Museum director Marcell Perse secured the pieces with support from the museum's support association and the North Rhine-Westphalian Ministry of Culture. They are now featured in the exhibition "Licht und Schatten – Johann Wilhelm Schirmer in Italien" running until end of 2026. Schirmer, a key figure of the Düsseldorf School, used these plein-air studies as teaching tools for his students at the Düsseldorf and Karlsruhe academies. The acquisition elevates Jülich to a leading center for Schirmer research, joining the ranks of those academies' collections. The studies are noted for their spontaneous, fresh quality and compositional completeness, comparable to Camille Corot's Italian works.