Ernst Metz

This article describes the artist. For the major general see Ernst Metz (officer) .

Ernst Metz at work

Ernst Christopher Metz (born February 23, 1892 in Cassel ; † December 25, 1973 in Eschwege ) was a German painter and graphic artist who became known primarily for his depiction of German cityscapes from a historical perspective.

Life

Ernst Metz, son of the teacher Heinrich Metz and Marie Schönewald, lived and worked 54 years in the district town of Eschwege on the Werra from 1919 until his death . After the early death of his father, he studied painting at the Royal Art Academy in Cassel from 1910 . His studies were interrupted in 1913 by his one year service with the 16th Bavarian Infantry Regiment in Passau. Then it was interrupted by the outbreak of the First World War , which Ernst Metz had to take part in as an officer from start to finish, with front-line deployments. After being wounded, he was able to take the drawing teacher examination "with distinction" in Cassel in June 1918. In May 1919, Metz took up his position as an academic drawing teacher at the Friedrich Wilhelm School (Realgymnasium) in Eschwege. In April 1918 he married the drawing teacher Erika Bornemann (* 1894) from Clausthal, whom he had met while studying in Cassel. In 1919 son Wolfgang († 1992, historian) was born, in 1928 son Harald († 8 November 2018 in Heringen, biologist). His wife Erika died in 1941. In 1943 Ernst Metz married the war widow Friedel Pottgießer (1905–2004). During the Second World War , his school service was interrupted from the beginning of the war until 1943, while Metz was head of the Eschwege Wehrmeldeamt (district military replacement authority), most recently as a major. After 1945 he suffered from a severe heart condition and was unable to return to school. He was therefore retired early.

Kassel, Palace and Fulda Bridge 1770

plant

Metz refused to categorize certain art movements or styles . His early works were strongly influenced by the works of Otto Ubbelohde , an uncle of his wife Erika, who were widely known at the time and who was particularly known for his illustrations of Grimm's fairy tales . In addition, the influences of the painter Paul Hey from Gauting are unmistakable, who was unusually productive as an illustrator of books and the author of countless postcards and collector's pictures. However, he only met both artists in person and had no opportunity to work for them. His works from 1919 consisted of pen drawings that were printed in folders or books. In addition, numerous works were created as etchings, woodcuts, watercolors and oil paintings. Postcards, emergency money bills and a wide variety of advertising graphics, certificates and coats of arms completed the varied repertoire.

In 1926 and 1927, twelve washed pen drawings from a series “Das Biedermeier-Kassel ca.1825-1838” were created. Here, Metz went back about a hundred years into the past for the first time, depicting buildings that have long since disappeared from old engravings and reviving the pictures with figures from that time. Metz had found his special field of work, which he expanded from then on. His painting technique focused on gouaches . His objects, picturesque buildings or ensembles, mainly from the Hessian area, he depicted in a very specific period, mostly in the 19th, but also the 18th and 17th centuries. This resulted in animated scenes from the past, detailed reconstructions that should not be " history paintings ". His "Hessian Uniform Pictures of the Biedermeier Period" (1964) are considered a small Hessian military history. In his 54-year creative period since 1919, Metz painted around 120 pictures with motifs from the city of Kassel, 150 pictures from Eschwege and an equally large number from other Hessian and other cities and villages using gouache technique. There are also around 80 uniform pictures, 30 oil paintings, over 50 woodcuts and etchings and around 150 pen drawings.

A large number of the Metz pictures are privately owned, especially since they include commissioned work. The city of Eschwege owns 46 originals, 24 of which are uniforms. In the City Museum Kassel are 29 works, including permanent loans. The Museum of the City of Bad Hersfeld had the military history of the city presented in 24 sheets.

Eschwege, bridge tower 1850

reception

A large solo exhibition with around 180 works was shown on the 80th birthday of Ernst Metz in the then new town hall of Eschwege from November 28 to December 12, 1971. Posthumously there were several solo exhibitions, including 1974 in Bellevue Palace in Kassel and 1992 in the Landgrave Palace in Eschwege, several times in the Kassel City Museum.

In 1962 the city of Eschwege named a street after Ernst Metz. On his 80th birthday he received the City Medal of the City of Kassel. In February 2011 , the Zweiburgenblick postage stamp in the Werra Valley was issued based on a historicizing painting by him.

Ernst Metz never kept a register of his work. Only twenty years after his death was his son Harald Metz able to start compiling the catalog of works. In 1999 the opportunity arose to publish it in an abbreviated form in the volume “Historical Views from Old German Cities”.

Books and portfolios

• Ernst Metz: Durchs Werratal , 10 pen drawings, 4 p. Accompanying text by Prof. Ulrich Otto Vollprecht Eschwege 1919
• W. Ulrich: Das Werra valley, hiking book through the Werra landscape from the Thuringian forest to Münden , with 25 pen drawings by Ernst Metz, Otto Vollprecht Eschwege 1920, 2nd edition 1921
• Ernst Metz: Alt-Cassel, pen drawings , 16 plates, 2 pages, text by Paul Heidelbach , A. Bernecker Melsungen 1922 (in 2 folders), reprint 1973, accompanying text with text by Paul Heidelbach 1922, Bremer Druck Kassel 1973 (in 1 folder )
• Eschwege , 12 pen drawings with 5 p. Text by Prof. Wilh. Ulrich, Johs. Braun, Eschwege 1925, reprinted by Hessenland-Verlag, Wanfried 1972
• Ernst Metz: Alt-Eschwege in pictures by Ernst Metz , 7 plates, 3 pages, text by Hanno Beck, Dieter Vollprecht, Eschwege 1957
• Ernst Metz: High Princely Hessian Residence City Cassel , 20 plates, 56 pages. Historical explanations by the painter, introduction by Dr. Leopold Biermer, Friedrich Lometsch-Verlag, Kassel 1961
• Ernst Metz: Pictures from an old town, Eschwege an der Werra , 32 plates, 36 p. Explanations by the painter, foreword by Eva-Maria Thom, A. Roßbach, Eschwege 1962 (English edition: Images of an Old Town )
• Ernst Metz: Hessian uniform pictures from the Biedermeier period 1825-45 , 12 plates, 5 p. Introduction and 81 p. Explanations by Ernst Metz, Friedrich Lometsch-Verlag, Kassel 1964
• Ernst Christopher Metz: Pictures of an old city , 18 plates, 22 p. Explanations by the painter, appreciation of Dr. Robert Kleinert and Dieter E. Kesper, Rotaro A. Roßbach, Eschwege 1973
• Ernst Christopher Metz: Pictures from Kassel, documentations on cultural history , 8 picture panels, Friedrich Lometsch- Verlag, Kassel 1974
• Ernst Christopher Metz: Alt-Melsungen , 8 plates, A. Bernecker, Melsungen 1975
• Ernst Christopher Metz: City and Country in the Magic of the Past , 48 picture panels, 11 illustrations in the text, 4 p. Introduction, 24 p. Text Rettende Bilder by Rolf Hochhuth, Winkler-Verlag, Munich 1976 (and Bertelsmann Gütersloh)
• Ernst Christopher Metz: Residenzstadt Cassel , 27 plates, 52 pages of text, introduction by Gerhard Seib and Angelika Nold, Friedrich Lometsch-Verlag, Kassel 1980
• Ernst Christopher Metz: Romanticism in the Werratal , 9 plates, 1 sheet of accompanying text by Friedel Metz, A. Roßbach, Eschwege 1986

Frankfurt, Goethehaus before 1755

Literature on Ernst Metz

• Gerhard Seib: Ernst Metz exhibition from November 28 to December 12, 1971 in the town hall in Eschwege. sn, Eschwege 1971.
• Rolf Hochhuth : Saving pictures. In: Ernst Christopher Metz: City and Country in the Magic of the Past. 48 plates, 11 illustrations in the text. Winkler, Munich 1976.
• Erich Hildebrand: Ernst Christopher Metz. In: Erich Hildebrand: Land to Werra and Meißner. Historical Society of the Werraland, Korbach 1983, ISBN 3-87077-044-9 , pp. 162-163.
• Carl Bantzer : Ernst Christopher Metz. In: Carl Bantzer: Hessen in German painting. Edited, expanded and re-edited by Angelika Baeumerth. Hitzeroth, Marburg 1993, ISBN 3-89398-108-X , pp. 194-195.
• Harald Metz: Historical views from old German cities. Ernst Metz (1892–1973). Painter - Historian - Poet. Keitz and Fischer et al., Eschwege et al. 1999, ISBN 3-930687-20-8 (cardboard edition: Ernst Metz (1892–1973). Painter - historian - poet (= series of publications of the Sparkasse Werra-Meißner. Issue 13, ZDB -ID 2414888 -X ). Ibid 1999).
• Paul Schmaling: Artist Lexicon Hessen-Kassel 1777–2000. Jenior, Kassel 2001, ISBN 3-934377-96-3 , pp. 391-392.
• Harald Metz: Ernst Metz and Spangenberg. In: Festschrift 700 years of Spangenberg town rights. Magistrat der Stadt Spangenberg, Spangenberg 2009, pp. 95–99.

Web links

• Ernst Metz at KasselWiki

Commons : Ernst Metz  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Harald Metz obituary. In: VRM grief. Archived from the original ; accessed on July 7, 2019 .