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35-508: The opera house was originally built by the architect Gottfried Semper in 1841. After a devastating fire in 1869, the opera house was rebuilt, partly again by Semper, and completed in 1878. The opera house has a long history of premieres, including major works by Richard Wagner and Richard Strauss . The first opera house at the location of today's Semperoper was built by the architect Gottfried Semper . It opened on 13 April 1841 with an opera by Carl Maria von Weber . The building style itself

70-656: A conceptual design for a theatre dedicated to the work of Richard Wagner to be built in Munich. The project, developed from 1864 to 1866, was never realized, although Wagner 'borrowed' many of its features for his own later theatre at Bayreuth . Already in 1833, there were first plans in Vienna for the public presentation of the Imperial Art Collections. With the planning of the Vienna Ring Road ,

105-624: A devastating fire in 1869, the citizens of Dresden immediately set about rebuilding their opera house. They demanded that Gottfried Semper do the reconstruction, even though he was then in exile because of his involvement in the May 1849 uprising in Dresden . The architect had his son, Manfred Semper, build the second opera house using his plans. Completed in 1878, it was built in Neo-Renaissance style. During construction, performances were held at

140-488: A prototype of German villa architecture. On September 1, 1835, Semper married Bertha Thimmig . The marriage ultimately produced six children. A convinced Republican, Semper took a leading role, along with his friend Richard Wagner , in the May 1849 uprising which swept over the city. He was a member of the Civic Guard (Kommunalgarde) and helped to erect barricades in the streets. When the rebellion collapsed, Semper

175-467: A terrace overlooking the core of Zürich , the new school became a symbol of a new epoch. The building (1853–1864), which despite frequent remodeling continues to evoke Semper's concept, was initially required to accommodate not only the new school (known today as the ETH Zurich ), but the existing University of Zurich , as well. In 1855, Semper became a professor of architecture at the new school and

210-467: A wider audience and expand debate. Differently from art history , there is not commonly an institutionalized training for art critics. Art critics come from different backgrounds and they may or may not be university trained. Professional art critics are expected to have a keen eye for art and a thorough knowledge of art history . Typically the art critic views art at exhibitions , galleries , museums or artists ' studios and they can be members of

245-637: Is a distinction between art criticism and art history based on institutional, contextual, and commercial criteria; the history of art criticism is taught in universities, but the practice of art criticism is excluded institutionally from academia. An experience-related article is Agnieszka Gratza. Always according to James Elkins in smaller and developing countries, newspaper art criticism normally serves as art history. James Elkins's perspective portraits his personal link to art history and art historians and in What happened to art criticism he furthermore highlights

280-446: Is debated among many, as it has features that appear in three styles: early Renaissance and Baroque , with Corinthian style pillars typical of Greek classical revival . Perhaps the most suitable label for this style would be eclecticism , where influences from many styles are used, a practice most common during this period. The opera building, Semper's first, was regarded as one of the most beautiful European opera houses. Following

315-806: The Gewerbehaussaal , which opened in 1870. The building is considered a prime example of Baroque Revival architecture . It is situated on the Theatre Square in central Dresden on the bank of the Elbe River. On top of the portal there is a Panther quadriga with a statue of Dionysos . The interior was created by architects of the time, such as Johannes Schilling . Monuments on the portal depict artists, such as Johann Wolfgang von Goethe , Friedrich Schiller , William Shakespeare , Sophocles , Molière and Euripides . The building also features work by Ernst Rietschel and Ernst Julius Hähnel . In

350-489: The International Association of Art Critics which has national sections. Very rarely art critics earn their living from writing criticism. The opinions of art critics have the potential to stir debate on art-related topics. Due to this the viewpoints of art critics writing for art publications and newspapers adds to public discourse concerning art and culture. Art collectors and patrons often rely on

385-580: The May Uprising in Dresden and was put on the government's wanted list. He fled first to Zürich and later to London. He returned to Germany after the 1862 amnesty granted to the revolutionaries. Semper wrote extensively on the origins of architecture, especially in his book The Four Elements of Architecture (1851), and was one of the major figures in the controversy surrounding the polychrome architectural style of ancient Greece . He designed works at all scales—from major urban interventions such as

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420-691: The Protestant Cemetery, Rome . Gottfried Semper's legacy in the field of architecture is marked by his profound influence on architectural theory, design, and education, as evidenced by scholarly research and critical analysis. Art critic An art critic is a person who is specialized in analyzing, interpreting, and evaluating art . Their written critiques or reviews contribute to art criticism and they are published in newspapers, magazines, books, exhibition brochures, and catalogues and on websites. Some of today's art critics use art blogs and other online platforms in order to connect with

455-1025: The Zwinger Palace complex. He designed the Dresden Hoftheater in 1841, which burned down in 1869. It was rebuilt in 1878 by his son to Semper's plans and today is called the Semperoper . Other buildings also remain indelibly attached to his name, such as the Maternity Hospital, the Synagogue (destroyed during the Third Reich), the Oppenheim Palace, and the Villa Rosa built for the banker Martin Wilhelm Oppenheim. This last construction stands as

490-671: The 1848 Revolutions (such as Heinrich Heine and Ludwig Börne ). In the fall of 1850, he travelled to London, England. But while he was able to pick up occasional contracts — including participation in the design of the funeral carriage for the Duke of Wellington and the designs of the Canadian, Danish, Swedish, and Ottoman sections of the 1851 Great Exhibition in the Crystal Palace — he found no steady employment. If his stay in London

525-604: The King (formerly Elector) of Saxony, Anthony Clement . The flourishing growth of Dresden during this period provided the young architect with considerable creative opportunities. In 1838–1840 a synagogue was built in Dresden to Semper's design, it was ever afterward called the Semper Synagogue and is noted for its Moorish Revival interior style. The Synagogue's exterior was built in romanesque style so as not to call attention to itself. The interior design included not only

560-527: The Moorish inspired wall decorations but furnishings: specifically, a silver lamp of eternal light, which caught Richard Wagner and his wife Cosima's fancy. They gave a great deal of effort to have a copy of this lamp. Semper's student, Otto Simonson would construct the magnificent Moorish Revival Leipzig synagogue in 1855. Certain civic structures remain today, such as the Elbe-facing gallery of

595-515: The Palace according to his plan, as was the Burgtheater. In 1871, Semper moved to Vienna to undertake the projects. During construction, repeated disagreements with his appointed associate architect ( Karl Freiherr von Hasenauer ), led Semper to resign from the project in 1876. In the following year, his health began to deteriorate. He died two years later while on a visit to Italy and is buried in

630-654: The Swiss municipality of Affoltern am Albis in return for the planning and construction of their main church's bell-tower. This citizenship was later confirmed by the Zürich cantonal government in December 1861 and with these new Swiss passports in hand, Semper was once again able to travel and finally also visit Germany, after the warrant for his arrest had been cancelled in May 1863. Semper provided Bavaria 's King Ludwig II with

665-641: The Trajan's column in Rome - brought him sudden recognition in architectural and aesthetic circles across Europe. [1] On September 30, 1834, Semper obtained a post as Professor of Architecture at the Königlichen Akademie der bildenden Künste (today called the Hochschule) in Dresden thanks largely to the efforts and support of his former teacher Franz Christian Gau and swore an oath of allegiance to

700-577: The advice of such critics as a way to enhance their appreciation of the art they are viewing. Many now-famous and celebrated artists were not recognized by the art critics of their time, often because their art was in a style not yet understood or favored. Conversely, some critics have become particularly important helping to explain and promote new art movements – Roger Fry with the Post-Impressionist movement and Lawrence Alloway with pop art as examples. According to James Elkins there

735-595: The appointment of Nora Schmid as the incoming Intendantin of the company (the second woman to hold the post, after Ulrike Hessler), effective with the 2024–2025 season. Gottfried Semper Gottfried Semper ( German: [ˈɡɔtfʁiːt ˈzɛmpɐ] ; 29 November 1803 – 15 May 1879) was a German architect, art critic , and professor of architecture who designed and built the Semper Opera House in Dresden between 1838 and 1841. In 1849 he took part in

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770-549: The museum question became pressing again. Works forming the imperial art collection were scattered among several buildings. Semper was assigned to submit a proposal for locating new buildings in conjunction with redevelopment of the Ring Road. In 1869, he designed a gigantic 'Imperial Forum' which was not realized. The National Museum of Art History and the National Museum of Natural History were erected, however, opposite

805-695: The orchestra for most operas is the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden . The Generalmusikdirektor (GMD) of the Semperoper is normally a different conductor from that of the Staatskapelle when it presents concerts. Exceptions have been Karl Böhm , Hans Vonk , and Fabio Luisi who have held both positions. Whilst the Semperoper does not have a GMD as of 2015, the chief conductor of the Staatskapelle Dresden

840-534: The painterly decorations of ancient villas he created in Athens inspired his later designs for the painted decorations in Dresden and Vienna. His 1834 publication Vorläufige Bemerkungen über bemalte Architectur und Plastik bei den Alten ( Preliminary Remarks on Polychrome Architecture and Sculpture in Antiquity ), in which he took a strong position in favor of polychromy - supported by his investigation of pigments on

875-430: The pre-war years, the Semperoper premiered many of the works of Richard Strauss . In 1945, during the last months of World War II, the building was largely destroyed again, this time by the bombing of Dresden and subsequent firestorm , leaving only the exterior shell standing. Exactly 40 years later, on 13 February 1985, the opera's reconstruction was completed. It was rebuilt almost identically to its appearance before

910-758: The redesign of the Ringstraße in Vienna , to a baton for Richard Wagner . His unrealised design for an opera house in Munich was, without permission, adapted by Wagner for the Bayreuth Festspielhaus . Semper was born into a well-to-do industrialist family in Hamburg in 1803. When French troops occupied the city in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars , the family moved to nearby Altona , at

945-535: The success of many of his students who attained success and renown served to ensure his legacy. The Swiss architect Emil Schmid was one such student. With his income as a professor, Semper was able to reunite his family, bringing them to Zürich from Saxony. The City Hall in Winterthur is among other buildings designed by Semper in Switzerland. In 1861, Semper and his family were awarded Swiss citizenship by

980-618: The time part of Denmark . The fifth of eight children, he attended the Gelehrtenschule des Johanneums in Hamburg before starting his university education at Göttingen in 1823, where he studied historiography and mathematics . He subsequently studied architecture in 1825 at the University of Munich under Friedrich von Gärtner . In 1826, Semper travelled to Paris in order to work for the architect Franz Christian Gau , and he

1015-615: The urging of the citizenry, commissioned Semper to build a new one. Semper produced the plans but left the actual construction to his son, Manfred. "What must I have done in 48, that one persecutes me forever? One single barricade did I construct - it held, because it was practical, and as it was practical, it was beautiful", wrote Semper in dismay. After stays in Zwickau , Hof , Karlsruhe and Strasbourg , Semper eventually ended up back in Paris, like many other disillusioned Republicans from

1050-468: The war, but with the benefit of new stage machinery and an accompanying modern rear service building. The Semperoper reopened with the opera that was performed just before the building's destruction in 1945, Carl Maria von Weber's Der Freischütz . When the Elbe flooded in 2002 , the building suffered heavy water damage. With substantial help from around the world, it reopened in December of that year. Today,

1085-471: Was Christian Thielemann , as of the 2012/13 season. The current Intendant (General Manager) of the company is Wolfgang Rothe. Since the 2018–2019 season, the Intendant of the Semperoper is Peter Theiler. In May 2021, his initial contract as Intendant was extended through the 2023–2024 season, at which time Theiler is scheduled to conclude his tenure in the post. In June 2021, the Semperoper announced

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1120-498: Was considered a leading agitator for democratic change and a ringleader against government authority and he was forced to flee the city. He was destined never to return to the city that would, ironically, become most associated with his architectural (and political) legacy. The Saxon government maintained a warrant for his arrest until 1863. When the Semper-designed Hoftheater burnt down in 1869, King John , on

1155-484: Was disappointing professionally, however, it proved a fertile period for Semper's theoretical, creative and academic development. He published Die vier Elemente der Baukunst ( The Four Elements of Architecture ) in 1851 and Wissenschaft, Industrie und Kunst ( Science, Industry and Art ) in 1852. These works would ultimately provide the groundwork for his most widely regarded publication, Der Stil in den technischen und tektonischen Künsten oder Praktische Ästhetik, which

1190-816: Was present when the July Revolution of 1830 broke out. Between 1830 and 1833 he travelled to Italy and Greece in order to study the architecture and designs of antiquity . In 1832, he participated for four months in archaeological research at the Acropolis in Athens . During this period he became very interested in the Biedermeier -inspired polychromy debate, which centered on the question whether buildings in Ancient Greece and Rome had been colorfully painted or not. The drawn reconstructions of

1225-512: Was published in two volumes in 1861 and 1863. Concurrently with the onset of the industrial revolution, the Swiss Federation planned to establish a polytechnical school. As the principal judge for the competition held to select a design for the new building, Semper deemed the submitted entries unsatisfactory and, ultimately, designed the building himself. Proudly situated (where fortified walls once stood), visible from all sides on

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