BIOGRAPHY
Born in 1836, the fourth of five children, Lourens Alma was named after his godfather. His father was a well-respected Mennonite notary whose original surname was Tadema. The boy would later take the surname of Tadema.
Fours years after his birth, Tadema's father, an organist and composer died, leaving an invalid wife with 5 children. Fortunately for Tadema, his mother took a great interest in the children's education. Tadema was intelligent and hardworking, he was no academic. The only subjects that interested him were drawing and history. His interest in history extended to only those episodes he saw as potential subject matter for drawing. Twenty-six small pencil drawings on separate sheets of paper survive from this period, 1848, depicting Greek gods and goddesses.
Aware of the shortcomings of his hometown for the study of art, Tadema applied for study under a Dutch master or academy but was rejected. He continued to pursue his passion for art and gained acceptance at the Royal Academy in Antwerp. Tadema spent a number of after his years at the Royal Academy, studying under other known artists, winning many awards, traveling Europe, and visiting Roman ruins.
During the summer of 1864, a meeting occurred between Alma-Tadema and Ernest Gambart, the most influential art dealer of the nineteenth century. With offices in several European capitals, and headquarters in London, Gambart's power and influence were considerable. Gambart was taken by Tadema's art. He arranged the first exhibition of Alma-Tadema's work in London, 1865. While the Tadema family remained in Brussels where he had a studio, Gambart actively promoted his work across Europe.
Following the outbreak of hostilities, in 1870, between France and Germany, Alma-Tadema left Belgium and settled in London. He remarried Miss Laura Epps in 1871 and became a British citizen in 1873. He made many life-long friends, also working and exhibiting in England, including Frank Millet, Edwin Austin Abbey, and John Singer Sargent.
Lawrence produced a vast amount of paintings over the next twenty years, averaging six or seven paintings a year, including a number of subjects in which he portrayed semi-nude females. To Tadema, the nudes were merely decorative adjuncts to vivid reconstructions of classical history, but to the prudish Victorians, a full-frontal female nude was deeply offending. After a slight furor over this subject, Alma-Tadema confined himself to portraying his models semi-draped. At the same time, it was rumored that Tadema was commissioned by Edward VII to produce a series of avowedly pornographic works but the verdict on this remains "unproven".
Alma-Tadema achieved international success, allowing him to pursue other artistic interests; teaching his wife, Lady Laura Teresa, and daughter, Anna, to paint, illustrating, stage design for the theatre, furniture design, constructing picture frames, and textile clothing designs. Some of his costume designs became the rage in women's apparel. Satin dresses made 'alla Tadema' were very popular and wealthy American women idled in 'Tadema tunics'.
In 1899 a knighthood was bestowed on Alma-Tadema. He was the eighth artist from the continent to be so honored, and the first for over a century. Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema, the epitome of "High Victorian" art died in 1912 at the age of seventy-six. He was so much a product of his art, when Victorians came to be despised, Alma-Tadema's art became so unpopular art galleries were literally throwing his paintings into the garbage and the Alma-Tadema name soon became forgotten.
Only as recently as 1962 did his work become popular again when Allen Funt, the American film producer of television's "Candid Camera" held the largest collection of Sir Lawrence Alma Tadema's paintings in the world. With his enthusiasm, Alma Tadema received a second success. Today he is known as Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema, a hard-working perfectionist, who could tolerate no less, and gave the world paintings that still have the power to amaze.