Engineers
Jean-François Albanis Beaumont was a French landscape painter, engineer, traveler and geographer.
He studied engineering in Paris and worked on architectural structures at Chambérly. Beaumont later accompanied the Duke of Gloucester, William Frederick of Hanover on a grand tour of Germany, Italy, France, and Switzerland, making notes and detailed pictorial sketches of views along the way. In 1800 he published the illustrated books Journey to the Lepontine Alps from France to Italy and Description of the Grecian and Cottian Alps (1802 and 1806).
Franz Bronstert was a German engineer and painter. Before World War I Bronstert visited and finished the superior school for engineers in Hagen. He served during the war in the rank of Lieutenant and later „Rittmeister" equivalent to Captain. As a prisoner of war at Ripon, Yorkshire he got into contact with artists Fritz Fuhrken and Georg Philipp Wörlen and started with his own artistic work. These contacts led to the foundation of the group of artists „Der Fels" (The Rock). Past the war he settled in Hagen and made contact with the group around collector Karl Ernst Osthaus especially with Christian Rohlfs. The latter influenced the work of Bronstert considerably. Membership in „Der Fels" led to numerous exhibitions all over Germany and Austria between 1921 and 1927. Bronstert’s art developed from radical expressionism of the early twenties to a realistic phase and finally to a reformed impressionism as the artist claims himself. Bronstert finds his motifs mostly in nature. Even though Bronstert mastered several techniques, like oil painting, drawing, woodcut it was the watercolour painting that he loved most. Bronstert was both a technical and artistic talent. He was successful in his job and was a member of the board of VARTA with several international patents on his record when he retired. Past retirement he concentrated solely on his art again. Works by Bronstert can be found in the Schneider Collection, Museum Baden, Solingen; in the collections of Karl Ernst Osthaus-Museum in Hagen; in the Museum Schloss Moyland, in the Von der Heydt-Museum, Wuppertal, in the Bavarian State Painting Collections, Munich,and in the art museums of Soest, Germany, Iserlohn, and Lüdenscheid as well as in private collections.
Marin Carburi of Ceffalonie was a Greek military engineer from Kefalonia.
Carburi studied mathematics at the University of Bologna, but later had to flee and became an officer in Catherine the Great's Russian army. He became famous for being able to transport the infamous Grom Stone from the Gulf of Finland to St. Petersburg to serve as a pedestal for the equestrian statue of Peter the Great.
The history of this engineering feat is quite remarkable. The French architect Falcone, who was commissioned to create a monument to Peter the Great, decided that traditional pedestals for equestrian statues were too banal for this project, and decided that only a massive rock would do. After a long search for a suitable rock, a peasant informed the commission created for this purpose that he had found a huge rock measuring forty by twenty-seven by twenty-one feet in a swamp near the Gulf of Finland. After the majority of engineers recognized its movement impossible, Catherine II commissioned Carburi to do it, with which he brilliantly coped. In fact, the military engineer became the inventor of ball bearings, creating a giant sled based on them. He wrote a detailed treatise about it, published in Paris in 1777.
Back home in Kefalonia, Carburi took up farming, but in 1782 he was murdered by his workers.
Augustin Louis Cauchy was a French mathematician and mechanic, military engineer, and founder of mathematical analysis.
Cauchy studied at the École Polytechnique and at the Paris School of Bridges and Roads. After becoming a military engineer, he went to Cherbourg in 1810 to work on harbors and fortifications for Napoleon's English invasion. Here he began independent mathematical research. Cauchy returned to Paris in 1813, and Lagrange and Laplace convinced him to devote himself entirely to mathematics. The following year he published a memoir on definite integrals, which formed the basis of the theory of complex functions. From 1816, Cauchy held professorships at the Faculty of Natural Sciences, the Collège de France, and the École Polytechnique in Paris.
Cauchy developed the foundation of mathematical analysis, and made enormous contributions to analysis, algebra, mathematical physics, and many other areas of mathematics. He almost single-handedly founded the theory of functions of a complex variable, which has extensive applications in physics. Cauchy's greatest contributions to mathematics are published primarily in three of his treatises, "Courses in Analysis at the Royal Polytechnic School" (1821), "Summary of Lessons on Infinitesimal Calculus" (1823), and "Lessons on the Application of Infinitesimal Values in Geometry" (1826-28). In all, Augustin Louis Cauchy wrote about 800 scientific articles.
Cauchy was a member of the Paris Academy of Sciences, the Royal Society of London, the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences, and other academies.
Girolamo da Treviso the Younger was an Italian painter whose versatile talent shone brightly during the Renaissance. Born in Treviso, his artistic journey was marked by a profound ability to blend the innovative techniques of the High Renaissance with the rich traditions of Italian painting.
Renowned for his expertise in a variety of subjects, Girolamo's works ranged from religious narratives to mythological scenes, each imbued with a depth of emotion and meticulous attention to detail. His style was characterized by dynamic compositions, a masterful use of perspective, and a vibrant palette that brought his figures and landscapes to life.
Among his notable contributions to the art world, Girolamo da Treviso's altarpieces and frescoes stand out for their artistic and historical significance. These works, preserved in some of the most prestigious museums and churches across Italy, continue to attract art lovers and scholars, captivated by their beauty and the story of their creator.
For collectors and experts in art and antiques, Girolamo da Treviso II represents an intriguing figure whose oeuvre offers a window into the transformative period of the Renaissance. His paintings are not only valued for their aesthetic appeal but also for the insights they provide into the cultural and artistic developments of the 16th century.
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Leonardo da Vinci was an Italian polymath of the High Renaissance, celebrated as a painter, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. His remarkable abilities and innovative thinking made him an epitome of the Renaissance humanist ideal. Born in Vinci, near Florence, in 1452, Leonardo was educated in Florence by Andrea del Verrocchio, a renowned painter and sculptor. He began his career in Florence, later working in Milan, Rome, and France, where he died in 1519.
Da Vinci is revered for his artistic mastery, technological innovation, and scientific inquiry. Despite having fewer than 25 major works attributed to him, including several unfinished ones, his influence on Western art is profound. His magnum opus, the "Mona Lisa," housed in the Louvre Museum, Paris, is considered the world's most famous painting. "The Last Supper," his most reproduced religious painting, showcases his mastery of dramatic narrative and pictorial illusionism. Both paintings exhibit Leonardo's unique ability to convey complex human emotions and his innovative use of techniques like sfumato and chiaroscuro.
Leonardo's interests extended far beyond fine art. He was a visionary in multiple fields, including anatomy, physics, architecture, and mechanics. His notebooks reveal designs for machines like bicycles, helicopters, and military tanks, centuries ahead of their time. However, due to his diverse interests, he left many projects and paintings incomplete. Leonardo's final years were spent in France, where he continued his artistic and scientific pursuits until his death.
For collectors and experts in art and antiques, Leonardo da Vinci remains a figure of endless fascination. His works not only embody the pinnacle of Renaissance art but also provide insights into the era's scientific and philosophical inquiry. To stay updated on new sales and auction events related to Leonardo da Vinci, sign up for our newsletter. This subscription is a gateway to exploring the rich legacy of this unparalleled artist and inventor.
Johann Wilhelm Gerhard von Brahm, also known as John William Gerard de Brahm, was a German cartographer, military engineer, and surveyor who worked for Great Britain to develop the lands of the New World.
His father was court musician to the Elector of Trier and gave his son an excellent early education. After a successful career as a military engineer in the Bavarian army, de Brahm traveled to Georgia in 1751 at the head of a group of German emigrants. There he displayed his talents as a surveyor and engineer, worked as a cartographer, and was commissioned by South Carolina Governor James Glen to design and build a system of fortifications for Charleston.
In 1755 de Brahm was appointed inspector general of lands for South Carolina and soon for the entire New World. He settled in St. Augustine, where he spent the next six years researching and preparing maps. His major works, "Map of South Carolina" and "Map of South Carolina and Part of Georgia," provide detailed topography and even describe underwater features. And his "Report of a General Survey of the Southern District of North America" records every detail from tide times to tips on tilling the soil. De Brahm's book The Atlantic Pilot, an instruction manual for sailing in Florida, was published in London and included the first published map of the Gulf Stream.
Guido Deleu is a Belgian sculptor, creative visual artist and civil engineer whose career began at the Roeselare Art Academy. Deleu's creations in ceramics and bronze are characterised by a modern, sophisticated and balanced character. His most iconic creation is the sculpture The Visitor.
Fritz Discher was a German landscape painter.
Discher first trained as a mechanical engineer and then studied painting at the Royal University of Fine Arts in Charlottenburg. In 1909, Discher became a specialist teacher at the Municipal Trade Hall in Berlin, and at the same time he continued his painting activities. From 1924 he had his own studio as a freelance portrait painter.
Leonhard Euler was the greatest mathematician of the 18th century and history in general.
Euler brilliantly graduated from the University of Basel and entered the St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences, then began to work at the Berlin Academy, and later to lead it. In 1766, the scientist received an invitation from the Russian Empress Catherine II and again came to St. Petersburg to continue his scientific work.
Here he published about 470 works in a wide variety of fields. One of them is a large-scale work "Mechanics" - an in-depth study of this science, including celestial mechanics. Euler by that time was practically blind, but continued to be actively engaged in science, in the records he was helped by his son Johann Albrecht and stenographers. Leonhard Euler made many fundamental discoveries that brought great benefit to mankind.
His massive contribution to the development of mathematics, mechanics, physics and astronomy cannot be overestimated, and his knowledge in the most diverse branches of science is admirable. During his lifetime, he published more than 850 works that contain in-depth studies of botany, chemistry, medicine, ancient languages, and music. Euler held membership in many academies of science around the world.
Johannes Faulhaber was a German mathematician and fortification engineer.
He was a weaver, but studied mathematics and showed such aptitude that the city authorities appointed him the city mathematician and surveyor, a surveyor. In 1600, Faulhaber opened his own school in Ulm, and worked on the fortification of Basel, Frankfurt, and many other cities. He also designed water wheels in Ulm and made mathematical and geodetic instruments, particularly for military purposes.
Among the scientists with whom Faulhaber collaborated were Kepler and van Ceulen. He made the first German publication of Briggs' logarithms, and also made the first illustrated descriptions of Galileo's compass.
Galileo Galilei was an Italian naturalist, physicist, mechanic, astronomer, philosopher, and mathematician.
Using his own improved telescopes, Galileo Galilei observed the movements of the Moon, Earth's satellites, and the stars, making several breakthrough discoveries in astronomy. He was the first to see craters on the Moon, discovered sunspots and the rings of Saturn, and traced the phases of Venus. Galileo was a consistent and convinced supporter of the teachings of Copernicus and the heliocentric system of the world, for which he was subjected to the trial of the Inquisition.
Galileo is considered the founder of experimental and theoretical physics. He is also one of the founders of the principle of relativity in classical mechanics. Overall, the scientist had such a significant impact on the science of his time that he cannot be overemphasized.
Samuel Johannes Holland was a Dutch-born British military engineer, surveyor and cartographer, and the first Inspector General of British North America.
He began his military career in 1745 in the Dutch artillery, moving to England in 1754 and becoming a lieutenant in the Royal American Army. In early 1756 Holland traveled with the British army to North America, where he created the first maps of New York State, worked as a military engineer, surveyed Louisbourg, Halifax, and Fort Fredericton, and participated in the siege of Quebec in 1759.
In 1764 Holland was appointed inspector general of the Northern District of North America and was appointed to the Quebec Council. From 1764 to 1767, he surveyed Prince Edward Island, the Madeleine Islands, and Cape Breton. He then mapped the northeast coast for the British army and helped negotiate provincial and state boundaries in the northeast. In 1779, Samuel Holland was appointed a member of the Legislative Council of Quebec and continued to serve as Inspector General for the rest of his life.
Everhardus Koster, a notable Dutch painter, left an indelible mark in the realm of art with his specialization in sea and river scenes. His artistic journey, beginning from an early age, was initially overshadowed by practical decisions that led him towards marine engineering. However, his undeniable talent for drawing, particularly his attraction to merchant ships, caught the eye of Bartholomeus Johannes van Hove, the director of the Royal Academy of Art. Van Hove's encouragement steered Koster towards a path in painting, ultimately shaping his artistic destiny.
Everhardus Koster's education at the Royal Academy of Art was a pivotal point in his career. Following his studies, he moved to Frankfurt, where he honed his skills by studying the Old Masters at the Städel and attending classes at the Städelschule. His proficiency in painting was evident as he established a successful studio in Amsterdam and was elected a member of the Rijksakademie in 1852. A significant milestone in his career was his appointment as a curator at the Villa Welgelegen in 1858.
Despite suffering a personal setback in 1859 when he lost his right eye in an accident, Everhardus Koster's resilience and passion for art enabled him to continue painting. He navigated through his artistic endeavors with a sense of determination, even amidst complaints and challenges related to the methods of art preservation and storage at the Villa Welgelegen. These issues eventually led to improvements and the relocation of parts of the collection to the Rijksmuseum.
Koster's later years saw him moving back to The Hague and finally settling in Dordrecht, where he continued to paint until his death on January 8, 1892. His legacy as a Dutch painter specializing in maritime subjects is etched in the annals of art history, reminding us of the serene beauty of sea and river landscapes.
For collectors and art enthusiasts, the works of Everhardus Koster represent a bygone era of Dutch painting, capturing the essence of maritime life and landscapes with a masterful touch. His art remains a source of inspiration and admiration, reflecting the tranquility and dynamic nature of water scenes.
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Arsène Lacarrière Latour, full name Géraud Calixte Jean Baptiste Arsène Lacarrière Latour, was a French-born American engineer and military officer, architect and surveyor, and writer.
He studied architecture and engineering at the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris and served briefly in the French Army Corps of Engineers. In 1805 Latour came to New York, where he worked first as a merchant, then as an architect and surveyor, and opened an architectural firm in New Orleans. In 1812. Latour became a U.S. citizen.
In 1814. Latour became Andrew Jackson's military engineer and made an important contribution to the American victory at the Battle of New Orleans. After the war ended, Latour published a book, Historical Memoirs of the War in West Florida and Louisiana, 1814-1815, which is still valued for its eye-witness view of the war.
In 1816. Latour traveled with Jean Lafitte on an expedition to survey and map the Southwest as an agent for Spain. From 1818 to 1834 he worked as an architect in Havana. His manuscripts include an extensive report describing Havana's thriving economy in 1815-1821, local agricultural production (sugar cane, coffee, tobacco), trade with Europe, the United States, and the colonies of South America; statistics; and a section on the city's possible future expansion and growth. Latour subsequently returned to France, where he died.
Sébastien Leclerc was a French graphic artist of the second half of the seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. He is known as a brilliant master of engraving and woodcuts, as well as an art theorist and military engineer.
Leclerc created more than 3,400 engravings during his career, most of them in the religious genre. He was also famous for his illustrations of French literary novels and scientific treatises on art theory, architecture, and geometry.
The artist's son Sebastien Leclerc Jr. and grandson Jacques-Sebastien Leclerc became famous as painters.
John Montresor was a British military engineer and cartographer who worked in North America.
His father was a military engineer and his youth was spent in British Gibraltar. Montresor studied in London, and in 1754 accompanied his father to North America when he was appointed chief engineer to Major General Edward Braddock's troops. John participated in various expeditions, delivered dispatches, and witnessed the sieges of Louisbourg and Quebec. During his service, he also did the necessary research and prepared maps of Acadia, the St. Lawrence River, and his route along the Kennebec River.
One of John Montresor's major accomplishments is the strategic map of the Hudson River, one of the most detailed maps of the New York City area during the American Revolution, first published in 1775. The map extends from Lake Champlain down the Hudson to Long Island, with insets of Lake Champlain and the White Hills in the upper Connecticut Valley.
John Montresor was promoted to captain in 1776, returned to England in 1779, and retired from the army. He died in prison 20 years later, accused of excessive spending while in the service.
William Henry Mouzon, Jr. was an American cartographer and civil engineer.
Henry Mouzon, Jr. was the grandson of a Huguenot immigrant and was sent to France at the age of eight, where he was trained as a civil engineer and surveyor. In 1771 he and Ephraim Mitchell were sent to survey the boundaries of South Carolina. As a result, a map was created and published in 1775 that included both North and South Carolina with corrections to previous maps.
This map was entitled "An Accurate Map of North and South Carolina with their Indian Boundaries," and clearly showed all the mountains, rivers, swamps, marshes, bogs, bays, creeks, harbors, sandbanks and shoals on the coasts, and gave the names of the land owners. American, British, and French troops used this map during the American Revolution. A copy of this map, owned by George Washington, is now in the library of the American Geographical Society.
Francis Gladheim Pease was an American astronomer and optical instrument maker.
Pease graduated from the Armor Institute of Technology in Chicago, worked as an optician and observer at Yerkes Observatory, and from 1904 also made optical instruments at Mount Wilson Observatory, where he worked for 34 years. Pease designed a 100-inch telescope as well as a 50-foot interferometric telescope, with which he made direct measurements of the diameters of stars. He also participated in the development of the Hale telescope.
In 1928 he found the first planetary nebula in a globular cluster (M15), now cataloged as Pease. Francis Gladheim Pease also took very high quality photographs of the surface of the Moon, and a crater on this Earth satellite is named in his honor.
Jean Prouvé was a French metal worker, self-taught architect and designer. Le Corbusier designated Prouvé a constructeur, blending architecture and engineering. Prouvé's main achievement was transferring manufacturing technology from industry to architecture, without losing aesthetic qualities. His design skills were not limited to one discipline. During his career Jean Prouvé was involved in architectural design, industrial design, structural design and furniture design.
Agostino Ramelli was an Italian military engineer and mechanic who worked in the fields of fortification and practical mechanics.
Ramelli studied mathematics, mechanics, and engineering under Giacomo di Marignano, who is considered a disciple of Leonardo da Vinci. He first showed his talents as a mechanic during Louis XIII's military campaign by constructing a mine under a bastion.
Ramelli invented many mechanisms that impressed his contemporaries, including their special aesthetic appeal. His most popular creation is the so-called Ramelli Book Wheel, a rotating reading table. Agostino Ramelli positioned his invention as a sleek design that allowed access to several books without having to get up from his seat.
Ramelli wrote and illustrated a book of engineering projects, Le various et artificiose machine ("Various and Artificial Machines"). The book contains 195 designs, over 100 of which are water-lifting machines, such as water pumps or wells, as well as bridges, mills, and so on. This very interesting book for our contemporaries is still published and is still in demand.
John Ross was an American military cartographer and surveyor.
Lieutenant John Ross served as a surveyor in the 34th Regiment of the British Army. After the Treaty of Paris in 1763, a British expedition was sent into Illinois Territory to demand the surrender of Fort de Chartres, the last outpost under French control in the area. John Ross traveled with this expedition, surveyed the lower river to the mouth of the Mississippi River, and created a unique map. It was titled "The Course of the Mississippi River from Balise to Fort Chartres; taken on an Expedition to Illinois" and published in London in 1775.
Lieutenant Ross's large-scale map of the Mississippi River is one of the few large format maps of the Mississippi published in the 18th century. Ross's map was the first official English survey of the Lower Mississippi and one of the most historically significant American maps. It delineated British territorial acquisitions after the French and Indian War and then established the future western boundary of the new United States. The map opened the territory to settlement from the east and defined the western boundaries of the American colonies.
Paolo Salvati was an Italian expressionist painter and restorer.
After training as a surveying engineer, Salvati developed a passion for painting, particularly expressionism. He worked with pastels and tempera, did oil painting, and painted in acrylics. His works include landscape miniatures, seascapes, still lifes and portraits. Salvati's works are characterized by life-affirming, saturated colors.
Salvati also designed and restored stringed instruments.
Roger Tallon was a French industrial designer.
Tallon and his team created hundreds of products, including industrial robots for Peugeot, the apparently purposeless 8mm film camera "Veronic", the Gallic 16 and 14 lathes for the Belgian company La Mondiale — a quantum leap in machine tooling —, airport vehicles, forklifts for Fenwick, graphic images for Fenwick Aviation, and a slide projector for Kodak.
In the art world, Tallon worked with Yves Klein, César Baldaccini, Arman, and was contacted by Catherine Millet, founder of the art press review, to create a brand that has hardly changed to this day.
Tallon became a household name[citation needed] in areas including tableware, furniture, interior design, reflector lamps for the German Erco, watches for Lip, ski boots for Salomon Group, toothbrushes for Fluocaril, oilcans for Elf, and so on.
Antonie Philips van Leeuwenhoek was a Dutch microbiologist and microscopist in the Golden Age of Dutch science and technology. A largely self-taught man in science, he is commonly known as "the Father of Microbiology", and one of the first microscopists and microbiologists. Van Leeuwenhoek is best known for his pioneering work in microscopy and for his contributions toward the establishment of microbiology as a scientific discipline.
Hans Vredeman de Vries was a Netherlandish painter and printmaker, decorative artist, architect and Renaissance engineer.
After studying the works of Vitruvius and Sebastiano Serlio and putting in a great deal of labor himself, Vredeman became known throughout Europe as a specialist in perspective. As an architectural theorist, he was most famous for his varied designs of invented views of cities and buildings shown in carefully considered linear perspective. These were apparently created as models for architects.
In 1575-1586 Hans Vredeman de Vries was appointed city architect of Antwerp and was responsible for the fortifications of the city. He then worked in Hamburg, Danzig, Prague and Amsterdam. He is also known for his 1583 publication on garden design and books with many examples of ornamentation and perspective.
His son Salomon Vredeman de Vries (1556-1604) was also an artist.
