Barbara Jožefa Struss
Slovenian drawing teacher and painter (1805–1880)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Early life
Barbara Jožefa was born on 29 November 1805 in Ljubljana in a family of servants Marija Tratnik and Anton Struss.[2] In 1823 she entered the Ursuline convent in Ljubljana.[3] She pronounced her perpetual vows in 1829.[3] Shortly after her arrival at the convent, at the suggestion of the community’s spiritual director Janez Šlaker, the painter Matevž Langus began teaching drawing to the novices, including Barbara Jožefa.[3][4][5] Barbara Jožefa assisted him in painting the altarpiece of the Holy Trinity for the main altar of the Ursuline church in Ljubljana.[3]
Teaching career and later years
In 1826 she was appointed drawing teacher at both the inner and outer Ursuline schools, a position she held well into old age.[3] For several decades she also served as prefect of the convent’s educational establishment.[3] In 1874 she was elected prioress of the Ljubljana Ursuline convent, a role she fulfilled until her death.[3]
Artistic work
She painted throughout her life. Many of her works were created for the needs of the convent and the Ursuline church, as well as for other churches.[3] She worked extensively in oil and also executed frescoes.[3] She signed her works with her initials.[3]
Major works
- Altarpiece of the Holy Trinity (1840): Prepared the compositional sketches and underdrawing for the Holy Trinity painting in the Ursuline church.[3]
- Saint John the Evangelist (oil on canvas): One of the side‑altar oil paintings for the church.[3]
- Stations: Painted wooden or canvas panels for the “Holy Sepulchre” backdrop.[3]
- The Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary (oil on canvas): For the convent chapel.[3]
- Frescoes in the refectory: A cycle of saints and Jesus (Joseph, Anne, Ursula, Angela, Augustine, Ignatius, Teresa, Catherine, Jesus, and Mary) on the walls of the convent dining hall.[3]
- View of Bled (oil on canvas).[3]
- Frescoes by the convent garden: Thirty smaller scenes.[3]
- Portrait of Bishop Anton Aloys Wolf (1845): Formal oil portrait for Alojzijevišče.[3]
- Christ in Dobrova (1848, painted on tin): For the cemetery there.[3]
- Our Lady at the Cross (parish church of Litija): Altarpiece.[3]
- Portrait of J. J. Schellenberg (1847).[3]