Wilhelm Ferdinand Bendz Danish painter mainly known for genre works and portrait which often portray his artist colleagues and their daily lives. He was one of the most talented artists in the successful generation of painters who studied under Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg but died early and has therefore left a relatively small oeuvre. He attended the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts from 1820 to 1825, where he studied under Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg. In 1825 he made an unsuccessful attempt to win the gold medal, only given to history paintings, the most prestigious genre at that time, and after that decided to specialize in portraits and genre works. After graduation, Bendz contributed successfully with a number of works to the annual exhibitions at Charlottenborg. Three of his paintings were acquired by the Royal Painting Collection; Model Class at the Art Academy and A Young artist looking at a sketch through a mirror from 1826 and the monumentally sized A sculptor working with a live model from 1827 and A Tobacco Party from 1828. After this Bendz was emploed as an assistant at Eckersberg's studio, working on routine assignments. In late 1830 Bendz finally received a travel scholarship which enabled him to leave for southern Europe which was considered a crucial part of an art education . After shorter visits to Dresden and Berlin, he went to Munich, which had developed into a vibrant centre for the arts, and where he stayed for around a year. His most important work from the stay is the thoroughly composed group portrait "Artist in the Evening at Finck's Coffee House in Munich". In the autumn of 1832 he continued his journey towards Rome, stopping in Venice on the way where he reunited with Ditlev Blunck, a friend and fellow painter from his student days at the Academy in Copenhagen. Shortly after, in Vicenza, Bendz who had felt ill since Venice died from a lung infection at age 28. Today he is mainly remembered for his many technically accomplished portraits, though his ambition most of all ran towards a refined fusion of portrait, genre scene and allegorical history painting. His technical virtuosity is particularly visible in his depictions of the play of light cast from an obscured source and the resulting shadows.