Johann Friedrich Grooth

Born: 1717, Stuttgart
Died: 1806, St Petersburg

German painter, teacher. Youngest son of Johann Christoph Grooth (1688–1764), court painter to the duke of Württemberg and curator of the royal picture gallery in Stuttgart. Younger brother of Georg Christoph Grooth. Studied under his father and other masters in Ludwigsburg and Dresden. Lived and worked in Vienna (1739–40). Moved to the Russian Empire with his brother, settling in Reval (1741) and St Petersburg (1743), where he was appointed court painter to Empress Elizabeth Petrovna after the death of his brother (1749–61). Commissioned to decorate the Mon Bijou Pavilion in the centre of the menagerie at Tsarskoe Selo with still-lifes and scenes with animals and birds (1748). Taught animal painting at the Imperial Academy of Arts (1765–75). Academician (1765), councillor (1766), honourary fellow (1774).

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