Estonia (Russia / USSR, Estonian SSR) Bronze Medal 1976 - In memory of Johann Köler (1826-1899)

145.53g. 71mm. UNC/UNC. 

Tallinn Artistic Products Combinate “ARS”, Metal Leafing Studio. 

Medaliers: A.Mölder, A.Raud. 

Johann Köler (1826-1899) was an Estonian painter and public figure, regarded as the founder of the Estonian national school of painting and a leading representative of St. Petersburg academicism in the post-reform period. Born into a peasant family in Livonia, he rose to prominence through formal training at the Imperial Academy of Arts in Saint Petersburg, where he was awarded the Grand Gold Medal in 1857. 

Following extended study and work in Germany, France, Italy, and other parts of Europe, Köler developed as a versatile artist, producing portraits, genre scenes, landscapes, and major religious compositions. His painting Christ on the Cross earned him the title of Academician in 1860, and in 1867 he was appointed Professor of Historical and Portrait Painting at the Imperial Academy of Arts. 

From 1862 to 1874, Köler served as drawing instructor to Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna, daughter of Emperor Alexander II, while continuing his artistic and pedagogical work. Alongside his academic career, he remained deeply engaged in the Estonian national awakening, maintaining close ties with leading cultural figures and advocating Estonian cultural identity within the Russian Empire. 

Köler died in Saint Petersburg in 1899 and was buried in Suure-Jaani, Estonia. His legacy endures as a cornerstone of Estonian fine art and national cultural history.