The cultural life of this region was initially influenced by artists and craftsmen who travelled through or immigrated to the region. The cities of Riga, Mitau (today Jelgava) and Reval (today Tallinn) can be regarded as small centres for arts and crafts. In 1803 a training centre for painting and graphic arts was established with the drawing school of the university of Dorpat (today Tartu). The first teacher there was Karl August Senff (1770-1838). Under his successors August Matthias Hagen (1794-1878) and Woldemar Friedrich Krüger (1808-1894) it existed until 1891.
Other training centres for Baltic German artists were the art academy in St Petersburg, founded in 1757, and the Latvian art academy in Riga, founded in 1919. But many also studied in Germany, Italy and France. Stylistically, the art of painting in the Baltic States at that time was largely oriented towards the schools and traditions of western academies.