Born: Christiansfeld, 1799
Died: Dijon, 1876
Carl Frederik Kiørboe (1799-1876)
Carl Frederik Kiørboe was born in June 1799 in Christiansfeld, Denmark to Andreas Frederik Kiørboe and Inger Maria Norling. He met and married his wife Hortense “Peintre Suedois” Corbeau, a widow, in France.
In his early years he worked in his father’s successful Grocery business as well as being an officer in the military. It is during this time that he developed a love and talent for art as he traveled throughout Germany, Holland and Sweden.
As a young officer in Stockholm he practiced animal drawings, and created a series of lithographs for “Portraits des chevaux les plus celebres au haras royal suedois a Stromsholms” (Hamburg and Stockholm 1829-31).
In Germany, Holland, and later Stockholm he studied animal painting (specifically horse anatomy). In 1840 he traveled to Paris and decided to become an artist.
His exhibitions include: The Academy of Art in Stockholm 1831-77; the Paris Salon 1843, 44; the World Exhibition in Paris, 1855,67; and Nordic Exhibit in Stockholm, 1866
After settling down in Paris, he retired his rank as officer to pursue his passion of the arts.
Being very prolific and recognized for his animal and genre paintings, many pieces were purchased by France, Sweden, and Denmark for their Museums. Some of the paintings purchased include: 'Flood' 1850, Paris, FR; 'King Karl XIV Johan to Horse', 1843, Drottningholm Castle, SE; 'King Karl XV in Chalons', 1860 in the National Museum of Art and History, Stockholm, SE. He was also commissioned to do the official portrait of Napoleon III after his coronation as Emperor, as well as 'Empress Eugenie to Horse', National Museum of Art and History, Copenhagen, DK.
He remained in Paris for many years then moved St. Cloud. His last years were spent in Dijon, where he died in July 1876.