Friedrich Gottlob Endler

Friedrich Gottlob Endler (born March 12, 1763 in Lüben , † July 7, 1822 in Breslau ) was a German engraver . Like no other artist, Endler captured the diversity of the Silesian cultural landscape in graphic sheets.

Life

Friedrich Gottlob was the son of an ornamental gardener. His father wanted him to be a gardener too, but his inclination was more on the artistic side. Friedrich Gottlob's father was unable to finance training at an art academy, but he looked for private tutors for him. Since Friedrich Gottlob hardly received any professional training there, but rather his manpower was being used, he took a job as a construction manager at Carl Gotthard Langhans . For him he carried out some buildings in Silesia. Since Friedrich Gottlob asked Langhans for a salary increase several times without success, he finally quit this position and became a freelance draftsman.

In the last years of his life, Endler was often plagued by long-term nerve diseases of the hands, which made it impossible for him to draw. He died impoverished.

plant

Friedrich Gottlob was an autodidact who developed his own knowledge and artistic skills. With the exception of early animal watercolors, Endler's work consists exclusively of graphic sheets in the gravure technique. Between 1786 and 1822 countless etchings , copper engravings and aquatints were created , which convey the image of Silesia in a unique way, as Johann Wolfgang von Goethe experienced on his trip through this "ten times interesting land".

Endler's etchings capture the image of Silesia in the earliest authentic representations. In addition to their artistic expression, they are indispensable, often unique, evidence of past Silesian cultural achievements. They show the still intact world at the beginning of the 19th century, the charm and scenic diversity of this province and the mysterious magic of its mountains.

literature

• Ziolko, Karl-Heinz: Friedrich Gottlob Endler: a Silesian engraver of the Goethe era. Munich: Delp, 1994. ISBN 3-7689-0255-2 .
• Nekrolog Friedrich Gottlob Endler . Neue Breslauer Zeitung, 3rd cent. 1822, first supplement to No. 127.