August Erkens

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August Erkens (born February 19, 1908 in Lobberich , † March 8, 1988 in Viersen ) was a painter from the Lower Rhine region . After the end of the war in 1945 he was one of the founders of the first progressive " Künstlergruppe 45 Krefeld ". This free association also took on painters who had previously been assigned to the category “ degenerate art ”.

Live and act

August Erkens was born on February 19, 1908 in Lobberich. After graduating from high school in 1926, he began an apprenticeship in his father's painting workshop. From 1929 to 1931 he studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris . This was followed by training in the studio of the painter and drawing teacher Otto Therstappen. From 1933 to 1934 he undertook several study trips to Italy to important sites of Christian-Occidental culture with a Hellenistic character, including stays in Rome , Florence and Milan . At his father's request, in 1935 he took his master's degree as a decoration and design painter with a focus on stage sets and posters . In 1937 Erkens married Sofia Brögger, who gave birth to daughters Renate (1939) and Carola (1946). With her name Fia Erkens she became known as a representative of the Naive Art movement on the Lower Rhine. Her role model for her own artistic work was the American painter Grandma Moses .

In the Second World War , Erkens had to take part as a soldier from 1939 to 1945. During his war missions in France, Africa and Italy he always had a drawing pad with him and recorded his impressions of the country and its people. After the end of the war, August Erkens became involved as a sponsor of young artists, for whom he organized public exhibitions.

Picturesque work

The main painterly work of Erkens justified his assignment as "Painter of the Lower Rhine". The landscape of the Lower Rhine at different times of the year has repeatedly been the subject of his work. The range of topics has become more extensive and varied through his several years abroad. These include portraits , still lifes, as well as humorous motifs and caricatures, through to works with contemporary historical references. As a soldier, he refrained from recording the events of theaters of war. He was interested in the inhabitants of the African, Italian and French villages and towns in which he was staying. He sketched the strange and charming nature and architecture. Many of these pictures and sketches are lost. Others stayed in the countries where they were created. The painting from before 1939 was largely destroyed by bombing , unless it came into the possession of art collectors.

Works by Erkens are in the following museum collections: Museum Europäische Kunst (Nörvenich, NRW) and in the European Culture Foundation (Bonn-Paris).

Exhibitions (selection)

A rich participation in exhibitions is passed down. Solo exhibitions have also continued posthumously.

  • 1929: Kaiser Wilhelm Museum , Krefeld
  • 1946: City Museum Wuppertal, "Artist Group 45"
  • 1946: Kaiser Wilhelm Museum Krefeld, "Artist Group 45"
  • 1947: Suermondt Museum Aachen, "Künstlergruppe 45 Krefeld"
  • 1947: Bergische Kunstgenossenschaft e. V., Wuppertal, "Artist group 45 Krefeld"
  • 1948/1949: Kaiser Wilhelm Museum Krefeld, "Lower Rhine Painting and Sculpture of the Present"
  • 1955: Kaiser Wilhelm Museum Krefeld, "10 years artist group 1945"
  • 1956: Altes Museum Mönchengladbach, "10 years artist group 1945"
  • 1957 to 1997: "Krefeld Künstlergruppe 45", several exhibitions in Fochem, Düsseldorf and Krefeld.
  • 1969: Süchtelner Straße school center, Viersen
  • 1971: School center Süchtelner Straße 2, Viersen
  • 1974 and 1995: "Werner Jaeger Halle", Nettetal
  • 1976: Galerie Notz-Erkens Nettetal and the following years, several times
  • 2000: Municipal gallery in the park, Viersen, Dahmen, Dors, Erkens, Paul Heimen , Therstappen. "Five artist portraits from the Lower Rhine"
  • 2008: Museum of European Art , Nörvenich Castle (North Rhine-Westphalia): "Homage: August Erkens 100 Years"
  • 2012: Galerie Marco Edition, Bonn: "August Erkens - A painter from the Lower Rhine"

literature

  • Sigrid Blomen-Radermacher, Christian Krausch: August Erkens. In: Five artist portraits from the Lower Rhine. Ed. Foundation “Nature and Culture”, Krefeld 2000, ISBN 3-87448-211-1 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Sigrid Blomen-Radermacher: August Erkens. In: Five artist portraits from the Lower Rhine. Foundation "Nature and Culture", Krefeld 2000, ISBN 3-87448-211-1 .
  2. ↑ http://www.lobberich.de/lobberich/haben/otto-therstappen.htm
  3. ↑ http://www.lobberich.de/lobberich/haben/august-erkens.htm
  4. ↑ http :// Grenzlandnachrichten.de/lokales/article/unendlichkeit-des-himmels.html  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / Grenzlandnachrichten.de  

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Erkens, August
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German painter
DATE OF BIRTH February 19, 1908
PLACE OF BIRTH Praise
DATE OF DEATH March 8, 1988
Place of death Viersen