Hans Geiler

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Part of a ceiling beam on the ground floor of the Gutenberg Museum in Freiburg

Hans Geiler († around 1534/35 in Freiburg im Üechtland ) was a 16th century sculptor who ran a workshop in Freiburg im Üechtland (Switzerland) between 1513 and 1534. He quickly worked his way up to become the city's leading craftsman and created numerous sculptures .

biography

Hans Geiler settled in Freiburg in Üechtland after 1513 and quickly became the city's semi-official sculptor. In 1516 he acquired Freiburg citizenship. He lived on Besen- or Hochzeitergässchen, was a member of the grocer's guild and served as a fish and herring inspector as well as a fish warden. Nothing is known about his family situation. In technical and stylistic terms, two phases can be distinguished in his work. The first, centered on the Furno altar, includes works created between 1515 and 1520. The works of the second phase between 1525 and 1530, like the Estavayer-Blonay reredos, are characterized by greater realism.

style

The sculptures in his workshop are meditative and melancholy. You seem to be completely occupied with yourself and have no contact with the viewer. The slender bodies have a small head and are bent in an S-shape. The heavily pleated robes let the body barely stand out. However, the sophisticated compositions skilfully hide the lack of real physicality, natural movement and correct anatomy. From the 1520s onwards, the figures gained a stronger physical presence, a more open gaze, and a more upright posture. The heads are always oval in shape and usually tilted to one side. The finely drawn eyes with emphasized upper lids are very characteristic of the style of the workshop; their almost always downward gaze gives them their distinctly melancholy expression. The faces of women and young men are distinguished by their delicacy: smooth skin, long, slender nose, narrow lips, pointed chin. The older men are characterized by bulging brows, strong cheekbones, crow's feet, vertical folds over the bridge of the nose, and long, regular curls of beard and hair. All sculptures have the same, slightly varied folds in the drapery. Geiler also created numerous crucifixes . Around twenty are known, all of which are of the same type. The crucified one appears in a stretched position, swinging slightly to the right. The head is tilted to the right, eyes and mouth are slightly open. The hair lies as a mass on the right shoulder. The crown of thorns, which is often missing today, was woven from real branches.

technology

The sculptures from Hans Geiler's workshop have several technical features that distinguish them from those of other workshops. The first is the carelessness in choosing the wood. Geiler used rough materials and made numerous attachments. The hands were usually set on and pegged in the sleeves. Openings in the wooden bowl were closed with coarse wooden blocks. The back cavity has cuts running across the fiber. Another peculiarity is that certain sculptures from the Geiler workshop are the first and only works in Freiburg's late Gothic sculpture that indicate a monochrome, wood-sighted version. This practice can also be found in the early 16th century with Veit Stoss, Tilman Riemenschneider and Hans Brüggemann .

Art-historical classification of Hans Geiler's workshop

Hans Geiler received his training in the Upper Rhine in the workshop of Hans Bongart. There are stylistic connections to the workshops of Michel Erhaert and Niklaus Weckmann in Ulm and of Jörg Lederer in Kaufbeuren, and for the crucifixes also to the Riemenschneider workshop in Würzburg. It speaks for itself that works like the Madonna in the Bollert Collection in Munich or the Crucifixion Retable in Paris, whose affiliation with Freiburg sculpture is still little known, were ascribed to workshops in Swabia.

Better than the market leader

With Geiler's establishment in Freiburg in 1513, the city suddenly had three sculpting workshops. The market structure seemed to be changing rapidly, and Geiler received more important commissions from important political or clerical figures (Peter Falck, Jean Furno, Claude d'Estavayer) or from the cities of Bern and Freiburg ( Grandson's retable ). The other two sculptors, Hans Roditzer and Martin Gramp , seemed to have concentrated on carpentry and joinery work, for example for furnishing the town hall. According to the sources, Martin Gramp may not have received any more commissions for actual sculptures, and Hans Roditzer contented himself with making small reredos for village parishes. Apparently this situation lasted until the deaths of Roditzer (1521/22) and Gramps (1524/25) and until the appearance of Hans Gieng in Freiburg (1524 or shortly before).

Sculptures from the workshop of Hans Geiler

  • Madonna and Child (so-called Vierge Tièche) from the Church of St. Nikolaus, Freiburg , 1515–1520, Museum of Art and History Freiburg (D 2006–533)
  • Furno reredos, around 1518, Franciscan Church, Freiburg
  • Estavayer-Blonay reredos, 1527, Dominican Church, Estavayer-le-Lac
  • Georgsbrunnen on Rathausplatz in Freiburg, 1524–1525, Museum for Art and History Freiburg (MAHF 1975–394)
  • Holy Deacon (Laurentius?), Around 1515–1520, Museum of Art and History Freiburg (MAHF 2430)

literature

See also

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Geiler, Hans
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Swiss sculptor
DATE OF BIRTH 15th century
DATE OF DEATH around 1534–1535
Place of death Freiburg in Üechtland