| 1927 |
born April 7 in Reichenbach/Vogtland |
| 1941-1944 |
apprenticeship as a lithographer, first artistic works created in in-company drawing courses, after completing his apprenticeship, scholarship to study commercial art in Munich, which he was unable to take up due to being called up for military service |
| 1945 |
injured, taken prisoner, escaped captivity, and returned to Reichenbach |
| 1946-1947 |
attendance at the Kunstgewerbeschule in Leipzig |
| 1947-1951 |
studied at the Hochschule für Grafik und Buchkunst (HGB) Leipzig under Egon Pruggmayer, Walter Arnold, and Elisabeth Voigt |
| 1951-1952 |
worked as a graphic designer at the “Illustrierte Rundschau” in Berlin |
| 1952 |
return to Leipzig, marriage with graphic designer Ursula Neustädt |
| 1952-1956 |
assistent at the HGB Leipzig |
| 1956-1965 |
lecturer at the HGB Leipzig |
| 1958 |
entering the SED |
| 1963 |
friendship with Inge Gohrisch (Brüx) |
| 1965-1974 |
lecturer at the HGB Leipzig |
| 1966 |
birth of the son Richard Gohrisch (Brüx) |
| 1968 |
art award of Leipzig |
| 1971 |
since then sculptural works |
| 1973 |
art award of the GDR |
| 1974 |
resigned from teaching position at HGB Leipzig at his own request, henceforth working as a freelancer |
| 1975 |
National Prize of the GDR |
| 1978 |
since then member of the Akademie der Künste der DDR |
| 1984 |
National Prize of the GDR for Art and Literature |
| 1985 |
honorary citizenship of Reichenbach/Vogtland |
| 1988 |
withdrawal from the SED |
| 1989 |
active participation in the Leipzig Monday demonstrations |
| 1993 |
awarded the Cross of Merit, First Class, of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany |
| 2003 |
member of the Freie Akademie der Künste Hamburg |
| 2004 |
died on April 7 in Leipzig, posthumous award of the Medal of Honor of the City of Leipzig |
| 2006 |
establishment of the Ursula Neustädt-Mattheuer and Wolfgang Mattheuer Foundation, based in Leipzig |
