Joseph Fay (artist)
Joseph Fay (6 August 1812, Cologne - 27 July 1875, Düsseldorf) was a German painter and illustrator; associated with the Düsseldorfer Malerschule. Life and work. From 1833 to 1844, he studied at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf; initially with Karl Ferdinand Sohn. From 1841 to 1842, he attended the master classes taught by Friedrich Wilhelm von Schadow. In 1840, together with Lorenz Clasen, Heinrich Mücke and Hermann Plüddemann, he won a competition sponsored by the , to create a fresco depicting the early history of the Germans, up to the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest, at the . This fresco, executed in  1843, proved to be his artistic breakthrough and received praise from the poet, Wolfgang Müller von Königswinter. It was destroyed during World War II. He went to Paris in 1844, where he studied history painting with Paul Delaroche. After returning to Düsseldorf, he produced no major works. In 1848, he became one of the co-founders of the progressive artists' association "Malkasten" (Paintbox). After the revolution of 1848, he focused on simple genre scenes and works inspired by literature, including a melodramatic episode from "Faust" by Goethe. Many of his paintings featured Italian motifs, and he became a regular visitor  to Italy. The background landscapes in his works were often painted by August Weber. He occasionally worked as an interior designer, and took a few private students; notably Karl Ferdinand Wimar. His wife, Marie, was the daughter of , a publisher and printer whose brothers, Albert and were also painters. Their son was the animal painter, .