Hermann Lange (painter)

Hermann Lange, self-portrait, 1930, oil on canvas

Hermann Lange (born June 2, 1890 in Niederhäslich , † December 3, 1939 in Freital / Burgk ) was a German painter and graphic artist .

Live and act

Hermann Lange was the third child of the mason Gustav Lange and his wife Selma, b. Kaden was born on June 2, 1890 in Niederhäslich near Dresden (from 1921 Freital-Niederhäslich). From 1896 to 1904 he attended the 8-grade elementary school in Deuben (from 1921 Freital-Deuben). In the summer of 1903 he suffered an accident in Burkau that resulted in lifelong left-sided paralysis. From April 1904 to September 1904 he continued attending the 1-class advanced training school in Deuben. In 1906 he began training at the Royal Drawing School in Dresden (preparatory institute for the School of Applied Arts). On the advice of the teaching staff, however, he was dismissed after only one year due to a lack of painting and drawing techniques.

However, the painter and graphic artist Karl Hanusch , who also lived in Niederhäslich, recognized Lange's talent, promoted his technical training and prepared him for the entrance examination for the Royal Art Academy in Dresden , where Hermann Lange studied from April 1908. From 1909 to 1911, professors Richard Müller and Osmar Schindler were his teachers in the middle class. On the occasion of the opening of a school exhibition at the academy, Richard Müller acquired a pen drawing by H. Lange for the academy on March 23, 1911. Then he was transferred to the upper class and the painting room of Prof. Oskar Zwintscher. In 1912 Hermann Lange received an honorary certificate with a bonus; in 1914 the academy again awarded a bonus and a scholarship. From April 1915 to October 15, 1918 he was a student in Professor Carl Bantzer's master studio , after which he continued his training with Robert Sterl until September 1919 . In the summer of 1919 he first took part in a non-academic exhibition, the summer exhibition of the Dresden Artists' Association .

In January 1920 Hermann Lange married the handicraft teacher Margarete Lunze from Pirna . The marriage resulted in two daughters. In the same year he made his first trip to Wroclaw , where he began to work on etchings . The Saxon Art Association acquired two of his etchings in 1923 as an annual gift for the association's members. These etchings were published in an edition of 325 each, but inflation immediately made the proceeds worthless. In 1925 he got an honorary position (21 hours per week) as a drawing teacher at the municipal trade school in Freital. Falling student numbers and urban austerity measures resulted in him being resigned in 1930 . During this time he met Curt Querner , whose passionate interest in the visual arts and his already emerging talent moved H. Lange to encourage him to study at the art academy. At the same time, he continuously participated in exhibitions in Dresden and Freital. Several purchases of his pictures by state and municipal authorities followed. In 1927 the family moved from Freital-Niederhäslich to Freital-Burgk .

In the years 1925/1926 Hermann Lange belonged to the group of 1925, as did Karl Hanusch and Erich Ockert.

From 1932 he was a member of the Dresden Secession 1932 .

He was involved in exhibitions as part of both associations.

Hermann Lange died of arteriosclerosis in 1939 at the age of only 49 in Freital-Burgk.

Appreciation

Not only the drawings and etchings by Hermann Lange are extremely detailed. The same is true of his paintings. He is considered an early representative of the New Objectivity and was ahead of his time. In the art business of that time, the subject of his works met with criticism and hardly with the favor of buyers. Commissioned works were rare. Hermann Lange's realism was considered out of date. Thus, artistic and financial success was often denied to him during his lifetime. In addition, there was his handicap, which made any practical work difficult for him. The proceeds from the sale of his paintings could only be an irregular contribution to the maintenance of the family. His wife Margarete made artistic work possible for Hermann Lange with her job as a handicraft teacher. The family lived in modest circumstances.

Exhibitions

posthumously:

• In 1940 the first commemorative exhibition for Hermann Lange took place in the Freitaler Gewerbeschule.
• In 1960 (on the occasion of his 70th birthday) and 2015 (125th birthday) the Haus der Heimat (since 1991 municipal collections with art collection) in Freital each showed a selection of his works.
• In 1995 (115th birthday) the Dresden City Archives organized a personal exhibition.
• In 1996 another followed in the Freital art association ("Einnehmerhaus") for the 75th anniversary of the city's foundation.
• In 1997, graphics by Karl Hanusch and Hermann Lange were exhibited in what was then the Winckelmann study facility at Schloss Nöthnitz.
• In 1999 the Dresden City Museum showed a selection of Hermann Lange's still lifes and interiors.
• 2005 Dippoldiswalde Tanner City and District Museum; Hermann Lange - painting and graphics
• 2012 Cabinet exhibition in the "Finckenstein" gallery, Dresden, Obergraben 8 a.

literature

• Hellmuth Heintz: Hermann Lange series painter and work Verlag der Kunst Dresden 1988
• Barbara Funk, Magdalena Flügge, Erhard Frommhold : Now open a window ... the life and work of the Freital painter Hermann Lange 1890–1939 . Dresden 1995.
• Karin Müller-Kelwing: The Dresden Secession 1932 - A group of artists in the field of tension between art and politics . Hildesheim (et al.) 2010, also: Dissertation, TU Dresden 2008, esp.p. 205, 374.
• Thomas Morgenroth: The world of small things. Burgk Castle in Freital commemorates the painter Hermann Lange, who was born in Niederhäslich 125 years ago. in: Sächsische Zeitung (Pirna edition) of August 10, 2015.
• Hellmuth Heintz: Hermann Lange series painter and work Verlag der Kunst Dresden 1988

Web links

Commons : Hermann Lange  - Collection of images, videos and audio files