Abraham aus Raffaels Disputa 30 - 1823

Moritz Daniel Oppenheim produced this pencil drawing, Abraham aus Raffaels Disputa, at an unknown date. It hangs in the Städel Museum. Oppenheim was the first Jewish artist to receive formal academic training and paint scenes of Jewish life. That makes this drawing of Abraham significant, as it shows Oppenheim engaging with both Jewish history and the art-historical canon. He made a copy of Raphael's Abraham. It implies an equivalence between Judaism and Christianity, whilst Oppenheim's identity as a Jewish artist inserts him into the German art world. In the 19th century, Jews were subject to institutionalized discrimination in Germany. Oppenheim's very presence as a Jewish artist was thus a political statement, because he had to overcome social barriers to become an artist. To understand Oppenheim's intentions in creating this drawing, further research into the institutions that supported or excluded Jewish artists at the time, and into the changing social status of Jews in Germany would be helpful.