Rating and value of works, paintings by Friedrich Overbeck

If you own a work of art by or after Johann Overbeck, and would like to know its value, our state-approved experts and auctioneers will offer you their appraisal services. Our specialists will carry out a free appraisal of your work, and provide you with a precise estimate of its current market value. Then, if you wish to sell your work, we'll guide you towards the best possible arrangement to obtain the optimum price.

Rating and artist's value Johann Friedrich Overbeck

Johann Friedrich Overbeck left behind a singular body of work in the neoclassical movement. From then on, prices for his works rose under the auctioneer's hammer. His paintings are particularly prized, especially by English and German buyers. The price at which they sell on the art market ranges from €45 to €573,300, a substantial range but one that says a lot about the value that can be attributed to Friedrich Overbeck's works. In 2016, his oil on canvas The Banishment of Hagar dating from 1841 sold for €624,300, whereas it was estimated at between €459,000 and €734,000.

Order of value from a simple work to the most prestigious

Johann Friedrich Overbeck's style and technique

Friedrich Overbeck was part of the neoclassical movement, painting mainly history. Religious subjects fascinated him. He drew his inspiration from the Flemish and Dutch masters, but especially the Italians, using chiaroscuro above all.

The life of Johann Frierich Overbeck

Johann Friedrich Overbeck (1789 - 1869) was a German Neoclassical painter. He was born in Lübeck. His father was a lawyer, as were the rest of his family. His uncle was a doctor of theology, and it was probably during this period of his life that he turned to religious subjects in his painting. In 1806, he chose Vienna to begin his career. He was a pupil of Füger, but Overbeck found the expectations of the Vienna Academy to be excessive, and in a letter to a friend said he wanted to withdraw into his own interiority.

He was convinced that the original purity of Christian art had been corrupted by Vienna and the rest of Europe, despite the fact that he himself came from Protestant pastors, and was therefore in tune with the Beeldenstorm and the iconauclastic crisis linked to the Protestant Reformation.

So he decided to go back to basics, taking his inspiration from the Italian Primitives, from the very beginning of the Renaissance, before Raphael.

Still against the Academy, he founded the Confrérie de Saint Luc (Brotherhood of Saint Luke) with painter friends in 1809, which was dissolved some ten years later. He decided that he was finished with Vienna and moved to Rome with members of his former brotherhood, notably Friedrich Wilhem and Peter von Cornelius. They avoided Antiquity and the Renaissance as sources of inspiration, because they were too pagan and artistically biased. The field of possibilities was therefore considerably narrowed, and they concentrated on Peruguin and Raphael's early canvases.

Overbeck eventually converted to Catholicism, and his group became known as the Nazarenes.

Friedrich Overbeck's influence on his time

Friedrich Overbeck turned away from his origins in order to lead a life that suited him better. Inspired by the Catholic religion, he painted religious subjects and churches throughout his career. In Rome, he enjoyed success, with high dignitaries commissioning him to paint frescoes for religious buildings.

Today, his work is highly rated on the auction market and sought after by collectors.

Recognizing Friedrich Overbeck's signature

Friedrich Overbeck's works are generally signed. However, with or without a mention, it is important for you to have the work appraised to ensure its originality and to be able to date it. And, of course, there are many copies.

Knowing the value of a work

If you happen to own a work by or after Friedrich Overbeck, don't hesitate to request a free appraisal using the form on our website. A member of our team of experts and certified auctioneers will contact you promptly to provide you with an estimate of the market value of your work, as well as any relevant information about it. If you wish to sell your work of art, our specialists will also be on hand to offer you alternatives for selling it at the best possible price, taking into account market trends.