Josef Madlener
Josef Madlener (born April 16, 1881 in Amendingen , † December 27, 1967 in Memmingen ) was a German poet, painter and illustrator.
Works
His works have been published in numerous newspapers and magazines. He also illustrated a number of children's Christmas books such as The Christ Child Comes (1929) and The Book of the Christ Child (1938). His Christmas pictures also appeared in postcard series. Other Madler book titles such as Ein Verdortes Herzlein blossoms or Das Wunderstädtlein , all published in large editions by Josef Müller Verlag in Munich, explain Madlener's commitment to religious education.
A famous painting by Madlener is “Der Berggeist”, which is dated between 1925 and 1930. This image was owned as a reproduction in the possession of JRR Tolkien and is considered the source of inspiration for his fictional character Gandalf , a main character in the novels The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit .
Madlener attached particular importance to his picture cycle God, Earth and Eternity , created in the mid-1920s , since it reflected his Christian-mystical philosophy and visionary worldview in a condensed way. In 1927 Madlener wrote a request to the directorate of Universal-Film AG UFA Berlin with the request to make a film of this picture cycle: "... that belongs to the whole world, but that is only possible through the film." He was initially unsuccessful.
In an interview, Madlener's daughter Julie (* 1910) estimated the creation of the picture “Der Berggeist” to be in 1925/26. She also noticed that the postcard was published in the late 1920s by Munich-based Ackermann Verlag in a folder with three or four similar motifs from German mythology: a fairy in the woods, a stag with a shining cross in its antlers ( Hubertus ) , Rübezahl and possibly another. The whereabouts of the originals was unknown for over 60 years, until they appeared in an auction at Sotheby’s in July 2005 and sold for £ 84,000 .
His artistic estate is kept in the MEWO art gallery in Memmingen .
literature
- Eduard Raps: Josef Madlener 1881 to 1967 , Memmingen 1981.
- Manfred Zimmermann: The Origin of Gandalf and Josef Madlener. In: Mythlore 34, 1983.
- Hans-Wolfgang Bayer and Johannes Hoyer: The estate of the Memmingen artist Josef Madlener. In: Schönere Heimat 87, 1998, pp. 66–70.
- Joseph Kiermeier-Debre , Fritz Franz Vogel (ed.): Josef Madlener - Mein Kosmos , 2006 MEWO Kunsthalle Memmingen, Böhlau Verlag. Cologne.
- Joseph Kiermeier-Debre, Fritz Franz Vogel (eds): Josef Madlener - The golden book , 2006 MEWO Kunsthalle Memmingen, Brack Verlag, Altusried.
- Joseph Kiermeier-Debre, Fritz Franz Vogel (eds): Josef Madleners Schattentheater , 2008 MEWO Kunsthalle Memmingen, Brack Verlag, Altusried.
Web links
- Literature by and about Josef Madlener in the catalog of the German National Library
- openpr.de: Josef Madlener - The painter of the Swabian Christmas
- MEWO Kunsthalle - Collections
Individual evidence
- ↑ See Joseph Kiermeier-Debre, Fritz Franz Vogel (ed.): Josef Madlener - Mein Kosmos, p. 116 f.
- ↑ See also the short film on the Madlener cycle God Earth Eternity
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Madlener, Josef |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German poet and painter |
| DATE OF BIRTH | April 16, 1881 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Amendingen |
| DATE OF DEATH | December 27, 1967 |
| Place of death | Memmingen |