Franz Hofer (painter)

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Self-portrait by Franz Hofer
Hofer's grave in the war cemetery in Lichwin, Powiat Tarnowski

Franz Hofer (born December 24, 1885 in Graz , Austria-Hungary ; † May 3, 1915 near Gorlice , Austria-Hungary) was an Austrian painter and graphic artist .

Life

Franz Hofer was the son of poor millers. He first learned the profession of lithographer in Graz, then went to Dresden together with his friend and professional colleague Fritz Silberbauer , where both worked as lithographers and had the opportunity to get to know the museums and collections there. Back in Graz, Franz Hofer studied from 1906 at the Landeskunstschule with Alfred Schrötter-Kristelli and switched to the Vienna Academy in 1909 , where he was initially a guest student with Alois Delug and from the following year a full student with Ferdinand Schmutzer . There he learned all the techniques of printmaking and received several academic prizes. In 1912 he was awarded the special school prize for his etching Der Gang nach Emmaus and received a state scholarship for The Descent from the Cross (1914). Shortly after completing his studies, he volunteered in World War I and died in May 1915 in the Battle of Gorlice in what was then Austria-Hungary .

Act

In the short creative period that Franz Hofer was granted, a large number of drawings in the various techniques, some attempts in oil painting, and a large number of etchings were made. His oeuvre is stylistically heterogeneous; it shows influences of various contemporary and historical currents. He didn't have the time to develop his own style. During his early time in Graz, echoes of the style principles of Art Nouveau can be found in his sheets . Later on, the Dutch baroque became particularly important as a great model for Hofer, and here especially Rembrandt's work . He also referred to the traditions of French and German realism and impressionism , as well as Austrian mood realism . Some of the drawings he made after 1909 point to expressionist design methods in the spontaneity and looseness of the lines as well as in the boldness of the composition . Franz Hofer's themes range from portrait and genre to landscape and cityscape to dealing with biblical content.

The focus of his interest were people on the fringes of society, life as he observed it in the markets, in inns, train compartments, on construction sites. During several stays in Slovakia, he captured scenes from village life there.

Works (excerpt)

  • Self-portrait, Neue Galerie Graz
  • South Styrian landscape with farmhouses, Neue Galerie Graz
  • Snow landscape, Neue Galerie Graz
  • Archway in the courtyard of the Krebsenkeller, Neue Galerie Graz
  • On the Mur near Graz, Neue Galerie Graz
  • Adoration of the Shepherds, 1926, annual edition of the Society for Reproductive Art in Vienna, portfolio

Solo exhibitions

literature

Web links

Commons : Franz Hofer  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Bruno Binder: Hofer, Franz . In: Hans Vollmer (Hrsg.): General lexicon of fine artists from antiquity to the present . Founded by Ulrich Thieme and Felix Becker . tape 17 : Heubel – Hubard . EA Seemann, Leipzig 1924, p. 238 .
  2. ↑ a b Sandra Brugger: Hofer, Franz. In: Allgemeine Künstlerlexikon. The visual artists of all times and peoples. Volume 74, de Gruyter, Berlin 2012, p. 60.
personal data
SURNAME Hofer, Franz
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Austrian painter and graphic artist
DATE OF BIRTH December 24, 1885
PLACE OF BIRTH Graz
DATE OF DEATH May 3, 1915
Place of death at Gorlice