Johann Friedrich Matthäi was a German portrait and history painter.

He was the son of Johann Gottlob Matthäi (1753-1832), a Meissen porcelain manufacturer, who later became an architect and sculptor. He initially studied at the Dresden Academy of Fine Arts with Giovanni Battista Casanova. This was followed by studies at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna with Heinrich Friedrich Füger.

After study trips and stays in Florence (1802–1804), and Rome (1805–1807), he became a teacher at the Dresden Academy and, in 1810, was named its Director. In 1823, he was appointed Inspector (curator) for the Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister; becoming its Director in 1834. He was one of the last exponents of pure Classicism in Germany. He died in Vienna, while returning from a trip to Italy. In Dresden

He was a longtime member of the Dresden Freemasons lodge, "Zum goldenen Apfel" (The Golden Apple). His students at the Academy included the Nazareners Carl Eggers and Johannes Veit.