Hans Cürlis

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Hans Cürlis (born February 16, 1889 in Niederdorf , Straelen , Geldern district ; † August 6, 1982 in Berlin ) was a German cultural film director , documentary filmmaker , film producer , art historian and university lecturer .

Life

Cürlis studied art history , cultural history and cultural studies at the universities of Berlin , Munich and Kiel from 1911 to 1914 . In 1914 he completed his studies with a doctorate to become Dr. phil. in art history. The subject of his doctoral thesis was the relationship between preliminary drawing and printing in Albrecht Dürer's work .

In July 1919 Cürlis became head of the Institute for Cultural Research in Berlin; the institute was founded as a branch of the eponymous, by the social scientist Dr. Erwin Hanslik in Vienna founded the institute for cultural research. The board of directors included u. a. the philologist and economist Walther Günther as managing director, the film director Lotte Reiniger , and the art historian and film director Carl Koch , Reiniger's husband.

Cürlis organized the institute on the model of the Viennese institute by Hanslik and expanded the institute further. On February 4, 1920 he founded together with the animated film maker Berthold Bartosch , Koch, Reiniger u. a. the non-profit association "Gesellschaft für Kulturforschung", which was entered on August 7, 1920 in the register of associations at the Berlin-Mitte district court. The purpose of the society was to “conduct scientific research into the culture of all peoples and to disseminate the research results through presentation in words, images and film” (Section 1 of the statutes). Their goal was a “new world cultural community in mutual respect.” The Institute for Cultural Research carried out research work and maintained a film department, a publishing house and an archive for educational and school films . The institute's task was to “disseminate political ideas and cultural messages”, especially through animation films .

For the production of films, Cürlis founded his own film production company, the Kulturfilm-Institut GmbH , of which he had also been director since 1919.

From the winter semester 1948/49 to the winter semester 1950/51 and again in the winter semester 1952/53 he was a lecturer at the Art History Institute of the Free University of Berlin . From 1953 until the winter semester of 1961/62 he was a lecturer at the Institute for Media and Communication Studies at the Free University of Berlin .

Gravestone for Hans Cürlis in the Steglitz cemetery

Cürlis was a member of the Association of German Art Historians , a member of the Berlin Art History Society and a member of the Board of Trustees of the Institute for Film and Image in Science and Education . He was also chairman of the Association of German Cultural Film Producers, chairman of the Institute for Cultural Research and member of the board of directors of the Association of the Berlin Film Industry.

From 1971 to 1979 Cürlis was an extraordinary member of the Academy of Arts in Berlin (West), Fine Arts section; From 1979 to 1982 he was a member of the Academy of Arts, Berlin (West), Fine Arts Section.

Hans Cürlis was buried in the Steglitz cemetery in Berlin-Steglitz .

Act

Cürlis has worked as a director and producer of cultural films , documentaries and educational films for over 50 years . By the mid-1950s, Cürlis had worked on more than 350 cultural films as a director, producer and screenwriter; Overall, his work is estimated to have made over 500 films. His films focused on politics and art ; In his films he also dealt with ethnography , geography (cinematic descriptions of landscapes and cities) and cultural history. Cürlis worked in a total of four different political systems: Weimar Republic , Third Reich , GDR and Federal Republic of Germany . With regard to his cinematic work, he always largely adapted ideologically to the respective systems.

Weimar Republic

Shortly after founding the Institute for Cultural Research, Cürlis made the acquaintance of Lotte Reiniger in the summer of 1919 . Reiniger was brought to Cürlis and his institute through the agency of the actor and director Paul Wegener . Reiniger showed Cürlis her cutouts ; Cürlis advised her to animate them. In the autumn of 1919, Cürlis then produced Reiniger's first silhouette animation film, The Ornament of the Heart in Love . He also worked as a producer on Reiniger's animated films Amor and the steadfast lovers (1920) and Cinderella (1922/1923).

After the First World War , Cürlis became involved in film propaganda against the Treaty of Versailles . In addition to Lotte Reiniger, the silhouette artists Toni Raboldt and Richard Felgenauer as well as Berthold Bartosch were employed for Cürlis; they designed animated films or parts of animated films. Cürlis' films in the early days of the Weimar Republic often contained “nationalist tones”. It emerged (with Cürlis as producer) u. a. the films Kohlennot and Peace Treaty (1920/1921; on the Versailles Treaty), Paris Conference (1921; on the Paris Peace Conference 1919 and the Paris Reparations Conference 1921), Demolished Germany (1921), Bread Film (1921), Entente Paradise in the Rhineland (1921), French economic organization in the Rhineland (1921) and two films about the economic and cultural importance of Upper Silesia . These propaganda films were produced by Cürlis on behalf of the Foreign Office . They were not only shown in cinemas and cinemas, but were also shown publicly on a daylight screen specially developed by the Berlin company Petra AG. Cürlis wrote in 1939 about his films in the 1920s: “This was the first time that film was included in the cultural and political interests of the Reich. The cinematic form also had to be found anew for this, since the cartographic animated film that had not existed until then was now applied to cultural-political issues ”.

Art and creating hands

In the field of art, Cürlis began his work in 1919 with ten short films about sculptures from Berlin museums. The sculptures from different countries were presented by slowly turning on a rotating base on their own axis. For the first time, these cultural films served specifically to convey art and culture to a broad mass audience.

His life's work is his film cycle Schaffende Arbeiter, begun in 1923 . From 1923 to 1926 and later after the Second World War , Cürlis shot a total of 87 shorter or longer film portraits of sculptors , painters , caricaturists and even art forgers at work. He became a film pioneer in this field. In his creative hands, Cürlis concentrated on the “creation of the work of art from the moment”. The focus of his films was the work of the hands; "Kulturforschung" was supposed to use the means of film to document the work of the artists with their hands. Cürlis shot film portraits about Lovis Corinth (while drawing a landscape), George Grosz (while working on a pen drawing ; Berlin 1923/1924), Heinrich Zille (1925; while drawing a "Berlin brat" on the balcony of his apartment in Berlin), Lesser Ury (1925; in his studio while drawing a Berlin street), Max Oppenheimer (Berlin 1926 and 1928), Otto Dix (Berlin 1926; drawing a female half-nude ), Wassily Kandinsky (Berlin 1926/1927; in the Nierendorf gallery at working on an abstract painting), Max Pechstein (Berlin 1927; in his studio on the picture Fischerboot im Sturm ); and Felix Nussbaum (1930; while working on his painting “Antikensaal”). Further short films were made about Max Liebermann , Max Slevogt and Käthe Kollwitz . In the 1950s and 1960s, film portraits a. a. about Heinz Trökes (Berlin 1950), Renée Sintenis (working on animal sketches) and Alexander Calder (Berlin 1967).

The film cycle Creative Hands was initially thought to be lost after the Second World War . The film was brought from the Berlin Reichsfilmarchiv to satellite camps outside Berlin that had been destroyed or looted. However, a copy was in the possession of a projectionist from Berlin-Dahlem ; In 1947 the cycle lost hands was shown in a private tour in a small group. The film collection Creative Hands has only survived today in fragments; The films with Lovis Corinth, Max Slevogt and Max Liebermann have been preserved. Max Liebermann's recordings were found again in the mid-2000s.

National Socialism and the Post-War Period

During the period of National Socialism , Cürlis produced and shot films with a political tendency that conformed to the ideology of National Socialism. From 1919 he was head of the Kulturfilm-Institut . In 1943/1944 Cürlis documented the Berlin City Palace in color photographs for the National Socialists . In 1943, together with Arnold Fanck , he took over the direction of the documentary film Josef Thorak - Werkstatt und Werk about the Austrian Nazi sculptor Josef Thorak . In 1944, together with Arnold Fanck, he directed the documentary Arno Breker - Hard Times, Strong Art about the sculptor Arno Breker .

After the Second World War , Cürlis was one of the co-founders of DEFA's cultural film department. In the 1950s he was one of the main representatives of West German cultural films. In 1951 he was on the jury of the first Berlin International Film Festival . In 1953 he received the Federal Film Prize for the cultural film Three Masters Cut in Wood . He was also awarded the Golden Medal (plaque) for the best cultural film at the Berlin International Film Festival .

Honors

Filmography (selection)

  • 1919: The ornament of the heart in love (animation film; producer)
  • 1920: Cupid and the steadfast lovers (animation film; producer)
  • 1921: Jorinde and Joringel (animation film; producer)
  • 1921: Paris Conference (producer)
  • 1921: Germany on demolition (producer)
  • 1921: Bread film (producer)
  • 1921: Entente Paradise in the Rhineland (producer)
  • 1921: The economic importance of Upper Silesia
  • 1921: Upper Silesia
  • 1921/1922: Münchhausen, the famous braggart (producer)
  • 1922/1923: Cinderella (animation film; producer)
  • 1924: Comedy of the Heart (actor)
  • 1923: Creative hands: Lovis Corinth (documentary short film; director)
  • 1924: Creative hands: George Grosz (documentary short film; director)
  • 1926: SchaffendeHände: Wassily Kandinsky in the Neumann-Nierendorf Gallery (documentary short film; director)
  • 1926: Creating hands: The painters (documentary film; producer)
  • 1926: Working hands: The sculptors (documentary film; producer)
  • 1928: Working hands. Mopp (Max Oppenheimer) (short documentary film; producer)
  • 1929: Creative hands: Alceo Dossena (short documentary film; producer, director)
  • 1931/1932: The sculptor Alceo Dossena (short documentary film; producer; director)
  • 1932/1933: Creative hands: four sculptors begin and complete their work (documentary short film; producer, director)
  • 1933: a legacy. 1923-1933. Ten years of "creative hands" (documentary short film; producer, director)
  • 1943: Josef Thorak - workshop and work (documentary film; producer; director)
  • 1944: Arno Breker - Hard times, strong art (documentary film; director)
  • 1953: Three masters cut in wood (documentary film; director)
  • 1956: The Daughters of Mr Lette (short documentary film; director)

literature

  • Herbert A. Frenzel , Hans Joachim Moser (ed.): Kürschner's biographical theater manual. Drama, opera, film, radio. Germany, Austria, Switzerland. De Gruyter, Berlin 1956, DNB 010075518 , pp. 106-107.
  • Ulrich Döge : Cultural film as a task. Hans Cürlis (1889-1982) . Filmblatt-Schriften, Volume 4. CineGraph Babelsberg 2005, 161 pages with photos. ISBN 3-936774-04-8
  • Johannes Hürter (Red.): Biographical Handbook of the German Foreign Service 1871 - 1945. 5. T - Z, supplements. Published by the Foreign Office, Historical Service. Volume 5: Bernd Isphording, Gerhard Keiper, Martin Kröger: Schöningh, Paderborn a. a. 2014, ISBN 978-3-506-71844-0 , p. 421

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c On the handedness of the drawing in Rheinsprung 11 , Zeitschrift zur Bildkritik, page 8; Retrieved November 24, 2013
  2. ↑ a b c d e Peer Moritz: Berthold Bartosch - Trick- und Animationsfilmer ( Memento of the original from October 17, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. in: CineGraph - Lexicon for German-language film ; 1984ff edition text + review in Richard Boorberg Verlag Munich. (on-line) @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.berthold-bartosch.de
  3. ↑ a b Lotte Reiniger as a silhouette artist, shadow player and pioneer of animation with her contribution to a lived humanity (PDF; 12.9 MB) work folder Stadtmuseum Tübingen, p. 12/13
  4. ↑ a b c d e July 11, 1919. Foundation of the Institute for Cultural Research Berlin ( Memento of the original from February 12, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ; German Institute for Animated Film; Retrieved November 24, 2013 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.diaf.de
  5. ^ Ulrich Döge : Institute and Society for Cultural Research In: Filmblatt, Cinegraph Babelsberg, Vol. 4, 2005, pp. 17-19
  6. ^ Berlin, Free University, Institute of Art History ; Lecturer 1945-55; Retrieved November 24, 20138
  7. ↑ 60 years commemorative publication of the Institute for Media and Communication Studies at the Free University of Berlin ; Retrieved November 24, 20138
  8. ↑ Hans Cürli's official website of the Akademie der Künste ; accessed on November 24, 20138
  9. ↑ a b c d e Hans Cürli's biography on the website Historical personalities in Berlin cemeteries ; Retrieved November 24, 2013
  10. ↑ a b Silke Kettelhake: Magic in paper cutouts ( Memento of the original from December 2, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. in: Fluter from December 28, 2005 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / film.fluter.de
  11. ↑ From the stag beetle to the swastika ( memento of the original from September 22, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. A film history CD-ROM by Madeleine Dewald and Oliver Lammert; Retrieved November 24, 2013 @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.wand5.de
  12. ^ Hans Cürlis: 20 years of cultural filmmaking . In: Institut für Kulturforschung eV (Ed.): 1919/1939. Berlin 1939, pp. 3-6.
  13. ↑ Anna Jansen: Image Moves - Painting in Film using the example of Julie Taymors "Frida" (2002) Bachelor thesis , page 19/20. GRIN publishing house
  14. ↑ a b c d Creative artist's hands - artist portraits by Hans Cürlis ; Filmblatt.de; FilmDocument 20; Retrieved November 24, 2013
  15. ↑ Question marks on every street corner - Twelve letters from Felix Nussbaum - (Letter of April 10, 1938 to Dr. Klein) Edited and annotated by Peter Junk and Wendelin Zimmer, published by Felix Nussbaum-Haus Osnabrück, Rasch Verlag, Bramsche, 2003
  16. ↑ a b c A film came to light again in: DER SPIEGEL , issue 12/1947 of March 22, 1947
  17. ↑ Creative hands. Corinth, Liebermann, Slevogt at work (1922) ( Memento of the original from September 24, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Hamburger Kunsthalle , media collections; Retrieved November 24, 2013  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.hamburger-kunsthalle.de
  18. ↑ FilmDokument cinema Arsenal in February 2006; Movie descriptions; Retrieved November 24, 2013
  19. ↑ Heil Micky in: DIE ZEIT of July 10, 1992
  20. ↑ Color photographs by the photographers Hans and Peter Cürlis ( Memento from February 5, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Senate Department for Urban Development and the Environment; Retrieved November 24, 2013
  21. ↑ a b Hans Cürlis ( Memento of the original dated December 2, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. in the database of the winners of the German Film Prize of the German Film Academy @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.deutsche-filmakademie.de
  22. ↑ Announcement of awards of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany. In: Federal Gazette . Vol. 8, No. 46, March 6, 1956.
personal data
SURNAME Cürlis, Hans
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German documentary filmmaker, cultural film director, film producer and art historian
DATE OF BIRTH February 16, 1889
PLACE OF BIRTH Niederdorf , Straelen, Geldern district
DATE OF DEATH August 6, 1982
Place of death Berlin