Leimfarben, 31,4 x 42,8 cm
Josef Hegenbarth
Josef Hegenbarth, one of the great German draftsmen and illustrators of the 20th century, created portraits, depictions of animals, and literary and biblical scenes with psychological insight, atmospheric depth, and a masterfully loose brushstroke. His body of work consists of more than 18.000 drawings.
curriculum vitae
| 1884 | born in Böhmisch-Kamnitz, Austria-Hungary (now Česká Kamenice, Czechoslovakia) |
|---|---|
| 1908–1915 | Attended the Dresden Academy of Fine Arts as a student of Carl Bantzer and Oskar Zwintscher, and as a master student of Gotthardt Kühl |
| 1914 | First exhibition at Emil Richter in Dresden |
| 1915 | Member of the Dresden Artists’ Association, later served on its jury and took part in its exhibitions until 1939 |
| 1917–1919 | A stay in Prague, where he worked amongst the pupils of the German-Bohemian painter and printmaker August Brömse |
| 1919 | Return to Dresden, studio at the Künstlerhaus in Loschwitz |
| 1921 | Purchase of the house at Calberlastraße 2 in Dresden-Loschwitz, on the second floor of which he lived until his death and which today houses the Josef Hegenbarth Archive of the Dresden Kupferstich-Kabinett |
| 1943–1945 | Stay in Böhmisch-Kamnitz. Expulsion and the loss of significant parts of his life’s work |
| 1945 | October: Return to Dresden |
| 1946–1950 | Contribution to the Berlin edition of Ulenspiegel |
| 1946 | Appointment at the Dresden Academy of Applied Arts |
| 1947 | Professor at the Dresden Academy of Fine Arts |
| 1949 | The role of the teaching profession |
| 1954 | GDR National Prize |
| 1955 | Corresponding Member of the German Academy of Arts |
| 1956 | Associate Member of the Berlin Academy of Arts |
| 1957 | The return by Czechoslovakia of the majority of the works left behind in Böhmisch-Kamnitz in 1945 |
| 1959 | Exhibition to mark his 75th birthday at the Nationalgalerie in Berlin and in Munich |
| 1960 | Member of the Bavarian Academy of Fine Arts in Munich |
| 1962 | He died in Dresden. His home, which his widow bequeathed to the Dresden Kupferstichkabinett, is now a research archive, a museum dedicated to his work, and a venue for exhibitions and events. The name ‘Josef-Hegenbarth-Archiv’ derives from Johanna Hegenbarth, who began cataloguing her husband’s extensive body of work immediately after his death. Hegenbarth’s grave, which he designed himself, is located in Loschwitz Cemetery. |
Josef Hegenbarth describes himself in a laconic and humorous manner: »I was born on 15 June 1884 in Böhmisch-Kamnitz. Years of suffering restored my joy in writing. School had put me off it. My proper period of study began at the age of 21 in Dresden. I received my general education in my home town of Bohemian Kamnitz and at the secondary school in Bohemian Leipa. I am a German Bohemian.«
Fritz Gurlitt, Das graphische Jahr, Berlin 1923
»The restraint and uncertainty that the Nazis’ art policy had imposed on him for twelve years had given way, after the liberation, to an almost unbridled productivity. This was also the crux of the psychological phenomenon that was Hegenbarth. Until then, his work had been self-contained; despite certain individual idiosyncrasies, it fitted into the spirit of the times, and now it suddenly burst out of its shell, spilling over its old banks. Hegenbarth was at least sixty years old when he began to make his mark on the history of modern German art with a style all his own.«
Ein unerschöpfliches Thema, in: Hiltrud Ebert (Hrsg.), Texte zur Kunst- und Kulturgeschichte Sachsens, Berlin 2009, S. 162 f.
further exhibitions
| 1954 | Dresden State Art Collections: »Josef Hegenbarth: Celebrating his 70th Birthday« |
|---|---|
| 1957 | Dresden State Art Collections: »Josef Hegenbarth. Paintings Repatriated from Czechoslovakia and Recent Prints« |
| 1958 | Duisburg Municipal Art Museum: »Josef Hegenbarth. Paintings, tempera works, drawings, illustrated books« |
| 1959 | Berlin State Museums, the National Gallery and the Bavarian Academy of Fine Arts, Munich: »Josef Hegenbarth: Celebrating his 75th Birthday. Paintings and Drawings« |
| 1966 | Württembergischer Kunstverein, Stuttgart: »Josef Hegenbarth« |
| 1970 | German Academy of Arts, Berlin: »Josef Hegenbarth. Drawings and paintings from the years 1920 to 1962« |
| 1980 | Weimar Art Collections, Kunsthalle am Theaterplatz: »Josef Hegenbarth. Works from the estate« |
| 1984 | Dresden State Art Collections: »Josef Hegenbarth: 100th Birthday« |
| 1987 | Klingspor Museum, Offenbach: »The Illustrator Josef Hegenbarth 1884–1962. Drawings, colour prints, prints and illustrated books« |
| 2003 | Regional Gallery, Liberec: »Josef Hegenbarth 1884–1962« |
