(Düsseldorf 1783–1867 Berlin)
Cornelius came from a family of artists and studied at the Düsseldorf Academy from 1798. In 1811, he traveled to Rome and found his way to artists of the Nazarene style, of which he became the leading representative. In 1816, he published illustrations for Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s drama Faust I. Cornelius is considered one of the innovators of monumental fresco painting.