Wilhelm von Gloeden (1856 - 1931)
Wilhelm von Gloeden (1856 - 1931)
RA Collection: People and Organisations
Photographer. Born 16.09.1856, died16/02/1931. Suffering from ill health in his early twenties, von Gloeden moved to Taormina, Sicily where he was eventually joined by his sister. From Taormina, he would travel throughout Italy, visiting his cousin Wilhelm von Pluscrow, a commercial photographer based in Naples, who taught him photographic techniques. The onset of financial problems together with the gift of a camera lead to von Gloeden’s early photography - selling postcards of the landscape and monuments of Sicily and taking portraits of the local inhabitants. The villagers attitude to von Gloeden’s open homosexuality was eased by his generosity and the royalities he paid his models, as some of the images sold by the thousand. After von Gloeden’s death in 1931, the Italian authorities, considering his work as pornographic, destroyed an estimated three thousand glass plate negatives and prints and by the end of the Second World War, only a few hundred images survived.
Profile
Born: 16 September 1856 in Germany
Died: 16 February 1931
Gender: Male
Works by Wilhelm von Gloeden in the RA Collection
15 results
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![Wilhelm von Gloeden, Youths dressed in togas, Taormina, Sicily.]()
Wilhelm von Gloeden
Youths dressed in togas, Taormina, Sicily., ca. 1890's
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![Wilhelm von Gloeden, Head and shoulders of a young man, Taormina, Sicily]()
Wilhelm von Gloeden
Head and shoulders of a young man, Taormina, Sicily, ca. 1890's
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![Wilhelm von Gloeden, Young girl, probably Taormina, Sicily]()
Wilhelm von Gloeden
Young girl, probably Taormina, Sicily, ca. 1890's
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![Wilhelm von Gloeden, Head and torso of a young man, Taormina, Sicily]()
Wilhelm von Gloeden
Head and torso of a young man, Taormina, Sicily, ca. 1890's
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![Wilhelm von Gloeden, Three youths dressed in pseudo-ancient Greek or Roman costume, Taormina, Sicily.]()
Wilhelm von Gloeden
Three youths dressed in pseudo-ancient Greek or Roman costume, Taormina, Sicily., ca. 1890's
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![Wilhelm von Gloeden, Head and shoulders of a young man, Taormina, Sicily.]()
Wilhelm von Gloeden
Head and shoulders of a young man, Taormina, Sicily., ca. 1890's
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![Wilhelm von Gloeden, Young woman with pitcher, Taormina, Sicily.]()
Wilhelm von Gloeden
Young woman with pitcher, Taormina, Sicily., ca. 1890's
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![Wilhelm von Gloeden, Portrait of a man probably Taormina, Sicily]()
Wilhelm von Gloeden
Portrait of a man probably Taormina, Sicily, ca. 1890's
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![Wilhelm von Gloeden, Photograph of a young man, wearing monastic robes, Taormina, Sicily.]()
Wilhelm von Gloeden
Photograph of a young man, wearing monastic robes, Taormina, Sicily., ca. 1890's
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![Wilhelm von Gloeden, Portrait of an elderly woman, Taormina, Sicily.]()
Wilhelm von Gloeden
Portrait of an elderly woman, Taormina, Sicily., ca. 1890's
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![Wilhelm von Gloeden, Two musicians, probably Taormina, Sicily]()
Wilhelm von Gloeden
Two musicians, probably Taormina, Sicily, ca. 1890's
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![Wilhelm von Gloeden, Head and shoulders of young girl, Taormina, Sicily.]()
Wilhelm von Gloeden
Head and shoulders of young girl, Taormina, Sicily., ca. 1890's
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![Wilhelm von Gloeden, Head and shoulders of young man, Taormina, Sicily.]()
Wilhelm von Gloeden
Head and shoulders of young man, Taormina, Sicily., ca. 1890's
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![Wilhelm von Gloeden, Young woman holding spindles, probably Taormina, Sicily]()
Wilhelm von Gloeden
Young woman holding spindles, probably Taormina, Sicily, ca. 1890's
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![Wilhelm von Gloeden, Youth dressed in ancient Greek or Roman costume, Taormina, Sicily.]()
Wilhelm von Gloeden
Youth dressed in ancient Greek or Roman costume, Taormina, Sicily., ca. 1890's
