Peter Birmann

Peter Birmann (14 December 1758 – 18 July 1844) was a Swiss landscape painter, art dealer and publisher. After spending much of the 1780s in Rome, he returned to Basel, where he established a workshop and became a founding member of the Basel Artists' Society in 1812. His work included landscapes and views of Italy and Switzerland.

Biography Peter Birmann was born in Basel on 14 December 1758, the son of the stonemason Rudolf Birmann. After training with his father, he studied under Johann Ludwig Aberli.

From 1781 to 1790, Birmann lived in Rome, where he worked in the studio of Louis Ducros and later managed the engraving workshop of Giovanni Volpato. He became acquainted with Johann Wolfgang von Goethe during his time in Rome. He returned to Basel in 1790 after contracting malaria and the following year opened a workshop for decorative and fine painting, art dealing and publishing.