Erich Herzog (art historian)

Erich Herzog (born April 24, 1917 in Eichstätt ; † October 21, 2000 in Kassel ) was a German art historian and museum director . From 1962 to 1982 he was director of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Kassel .

life and work

Erich Herzog grew up in a musical family home. He attended boarding school and secondary school in Landshut . He studied art history , German and classical archeology at the University of Munich . His studies were interrupted by the outbreak of World War II, which he experienced as a news soldier. After returning from American captivity, he continued his studies in Munich and temporarily in Göttingen . His professors included Hans Jantzen , Georg Graf Vitzthum , Herbert von Eine , Ernst Buschor and Hans Diepolder .

In 1947, Duke was treated with a dissertation on the late Gothic sculpture in Eichstatt with Hans Jantzen doctorate . From 1948 he worked as an assistant at the Art History Institute of the University of Frankfurt . He completed his habilitation there in 1952 with a thesis on " The Ottonian City ". From 1953 he held lectures as a private lecturer at the Frankfurt Art History Institute.

He received a scholarship from the Ford Foundation and in the winter semester 1958/59 he was given the opportunity to give lectures on German and French art of the Middle Ages at the University of Chicago . The University of Chicago offered him a professorship in 1961. At the same time he received the offer to take over the management of the State Art Collections in Kassel. He chose Kassel and took up his position on January 1, 1962.

Immediately after taking office, he published the programmatic so-called " Duke Plan ", which he had publicly discussed. This plan envisaged reviving the culturally and politically declining museum landscape of Kassel since the Second World War by:

• adequate accommodation and presentation of the nine art collections of Kurhessen-Kassel
• Adequate human and financial resources from the public authorities and from third-party funds to be acquired
• an expansion of the collections through private loans and acquisitions through patronage.

At the same time, he presented a museum plan that was approved by the Hessian state government and two-thirds of which was implemented during his term of office until 1982:

• Expansion of the war-torn parts of Wilhelmshöhe Palace for the Old Masters Picture Gallery (designed by him). The antique collection, the graphic collection. The library, management and administration were also housed there. (Opened in 1974)
• Expansion of the old gallery on the Schönen Aussicht in Kassel, which was destroyed in the war, to become the Neue Galerie for the presentation of paintings and sculptures from 1750 to the present, combining state and municipal holdings (opening in 1976)
• Expansion of Friedrichstein Castle in Bad Wildungen for the Hessian military and hunting history and for the history of the Kingdom of Westphalia (opened in 1980/1982)
• Expansion of the gate guard at the Hessian State Museum Kassel for the arts and crafts, arts and crafts and design collection since the 19th century. (Opened in 1982)

In 1982, Erich Duke of land was Hesse with the Goethe Medal of the State of Hesse and the Federal Republic of Germany with the Great Cross of Merit awarded.

Erich Herzog published numerous publications on art, archeology and art history. He was on the board of directors of the documenta Society for the documenta exhibitions: documenta 3 (1964), 4th documenta (1968), Documenta 5 (1972) and documenta 6 (1977).

Herzog was involved in numerous other honorary posts, including ten years as chairman of the Goethe Society Kassel, the re-establishment of the Kassel Museum Association in 1974, the Kurhessische Gesellschaft für Kunst und Wissenschaft and the Gesellschaft für Christian-Jüdische Zusammenarbeit Kassel .

Publications (selection)

• Electorate Hessian painter 1800-1850 . Hessian Fire Insurance Company, Kassel 1967.

literature

• Wolfgang Adler: Biographical remarks on Erich Herzog . In: Art in Hessen and on the Middle Rhine 22, 1982, pp. 7–8.
• Friedrich Lahusen : Twenty years of the Kassel State Art Collections under the direction of Erich Herzog . In: Art in Hessen and am Mittelrhein 22, 1982, pp. 9-10.
• Elfriede Heise: List of Erich Herzog's publications . In: Art in Hessen and on the Middle Rhine 22, 1982, pp. 13-16.
• Jürgen M. Lehmann: Biographies of the scientific staff at the Hessisches Landesmuseum Kassel 1913–1988 . In: Art in Hessen and am Mittelrhein 28, 1988, p. 161.
• State Museums Kassel; Goethe Society Kassel eV; Kurhessische Gesellschaft für Kunst und Wissenschaft Kassel e. V. (Ed.): In Memoriam Erich Herzog . Kassel 2001.

Web links

• Literature by and about Erich Herzog in the catalog of the German National Library