Adolph Menzel, On a Journey to Beautiful Countryside, 1892
Adolph Menzel, Ball Scene (detail)
In 1790 Elector Palatine Charles Theodore, convinced of the young artist’s talent, purchased two landscapes, and the following year granted him 400 florins to travel to England and Italy; instead, Kobell used the money to finance a move (1793) to Munich. From 1792 Charles Theodore paid him an annual sum of 500 florins on condition that he deliver one picture each year to the Elector’s Gallery.
Born in Münsterberg, Woelfl was among the most famous painters of Breslau's cityscape. He was associated with the city from his early years - he graduated the gymnasium of St. Matthias and studied languages at the university there. A sought after portraitist of Breslau, Ernst Resch, taught him the secrets of painting, and then Woelfl polished his skills during numerous travels over Germany, Austria and north of Italy. His vedutas of Breslau were very popular among local collectors, e.g. consul Theodor Ehrlich amassed a large group of Woelfl's works.
At first Woelfl collected prints of modern artists. In time his collector's passion evolved and started absorbing all his funds. He possessed drawings and watercolors of Carl Philipp Fohr (previously owned by other artists of Breslau, Carl Hermann and Raphael Schall), numerous compositions by Schall, Johann Heinrich König and Amand G. Zausig, with whom he was personally acquainted. After Wolfl's death his collection, the value of which was estimated at 15000 marks, was auctioned. A part of the works were acquired by other collectors of Breslau: Toni Neisser, Eduard Feige and Wilhelm Perlhöfter.source