Sohn, Karl Rudolph |
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BORN 21 Jul 1845, Düsseldorf, Nordrhein-Westfalen - DIED 29 Aug 1908, Düsseldorf, Nordrhein-Westfalen BIRTH NAME Sohn, Karl Frierich Rudolph GRAVE LOCATION Düsseldorf, Nordrhein-Westfalen: Nordfriedhof, Danziger Strasse (Feld 70) |
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Karl Rudolph Sohn was the son of the landscape painter Ferdinand Sohn (1805-1867) and his wife Emilie Auguste, born Mülmann (1775-1884). He was educated at the Königlichen Gymnasium in Düsseldorf and dismissed of military service because of physical weakness. From 1863 he studied engineering in Karlsruhe. After graduating in 1866 he returned to Düsseldorf. His father allowed him to train as an artist. At the Academy in Düsseldorf Carl Müller and Julius Roeting were his teacher. He was apprenticed to his cousin Wilhelm Sohn who enhanced his skills as a portrait painter. They undertook many study trips together. In 1873 Otto Wesendonck commissioned him to paint his sons Hans and Karl. This enabled him to marry Else Rethel on 23 August 1873 in Dresden. She was the daughter of the painter Alfred Rethel. They settled in Düsseldorf. In 1875 their son Alfred Sohn-Rethel (d.1958) was born. He became a painter as well. Their daughter Mira (1884-1974) married the painter Werner Heuser (1880-1964). In 1874 Karl Rudolph Sohn obtained a position as teacher at the Art Academy. He established an international reputation as a portrait painter that brought him to the British Court from 1882 to 1886. He painted members of the Royal Family, including Queen Victoria. He worked on commissions in France and Italy as well. He died in 1908 in Düsseldorf. Related persons • worked for Wesendonck, Otto |
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 The grave of Karl Sohn at the Nordfriedhof in Düsseldorf, Nordrhein-Westfalen. Picture by Androom (21 Jun 2025) |
 The grave of Karl Sohn and Else Sohn-Rethel at the Nordfriedhof in Düsseldorf, Nordrhein-Westfalen. Picture by Androom (21 Jun 2025) |
