This finely observed early 19th-century oil painting, attributed to German artist Carl Adolf Mende (1807-1857), depicts Jean Gerard Vonderbank, a German surveyor, instrument designer, and mathematical author, shown with his wife and daughter. The composition is anchored by the inclusion of Vonderbank’s published work, ‘The Equilateral Triangle as a Curve Drawer Geodolite’, issued in Aachen in 1824.
The scene unfolds with quiet dignity. Vonderbank stands to one side, composed and assured, gesturing gently toward the open book that rests between the family members. The women are presented with tenderness rather than hierarchy, one seated, one standing - their expressions calm and reflective. The atmosphere is one of domestic stillness, softened by the surrounding landscape and the filtered light that binds the figures together.
The triangular structure of the composition is especially resonant. It subtly mirrors the subject of Vonderbank’s own publication, reinforcing the intellectual symbolism at the heart of the painting. His profession, rooted in precision, measurement, and geometry, is translated visually into balance and harmony.
Jean Gerard Vonderbank was active in Aachen in the early decades of the 19th century and worked as a technical specialist in surveying and geometric instrumentation. His 1824 publication, ‘The Equilateral Triangle as a Curve Drawer Geodolite’, reflects a highly specialised field concerned with land measurement, cartography, and mathematical drafting - disciplines essential to the modernising European landscape of the period.
Archival marriage records indicate that Vonderbank was twice married: first to Anne Marie Parisis in 1805, with whom he had a daughter, Anne Catherine (born 1806), and secondly to Marie Sophie Raick in 1814. Based on the chronology and ages suggested within the painting, the two female figures are most plausibly interpreted as his second wife and his daughter from his first marriage, rather than two daughters. We feel that, given the presence of a coral necklace, the young lady seated is his daughter. These were often given to children for their symbolic properties.
The inclusion of his book, presented almost ceremonially, suggests a moment of personal pride, marking the culmination of a life’s work shared within the intimacy of the family sphere.
Portraits of technical professionals are comparatively rare within early 19th-century domestic painting, and even more unusual is the explicit celebration of intellectual authorship. This work stands as a deeply human document: a man not asserting status, but recording achievement, continuity, and belonging.
It is a portrait not only of likeness, but of purpose.
Inscribed on the reverse and held within a 19th-century gilt frame.
Learn more about Carl Adolf Mende in our directory.
Medium: Oil on canvas
Overall size: 53½” x 47” / 136cm x 120cm
Year of creation: c. 1830
Labels & Inscriptions: Inscribed ‘C. Mende Tante Vonderbanck und Familie Aachen um 1830’ on the reverse.
Provenance: Private collection, Germany.
Condition: Cleaned. Revarnished. Canvas relined. Later stretcher. Fine craquelure throughout. The paint layer is stable. Frame in excellent condition.
Artist’s auction maximum: £2,106 for ‘Der Maler Heinrich Heinlein vor der Staffelei sitzend (1834)’, Oil on canvas, Neumeister, Munich, 27 February 1999 (lot 182).
Our reference: BRV2249
