artist
Boehm was surrounded by sculpture from a young age, his father served as a court medal maker and head of the imperial mint. At 14, he began studying at Leigh’s Academy of Art in London (now the Heatherley School of Fine Art). By 17, he had returned to Vienna to study model making and medal design before working in Paris and Italy. In 1856, he won the First Imperial Prize for Sculpture in Vienna. He settled in London in 1862, where he exhibited at the International Exhibition and began focusing on busts. His clients included Viscount Stratford Canning, painter John Everett Millais, composer Franz Liszt, and author William Makepeace Thackeray.
With a growing reputation came commissions by the aristocracy to create equestrian sculptures for their estates. In 1869, his work caught the attention of Queen Victoria, and he quickly became favored by the royal court. His marble statue of the Queen remains one of his most celebrated early works. Over his career, Boehm completed more than 40 royal commissions, including several sculptures of Queen Victoria for her Golden Jubilee.
provenance
Private Collection, New York City