Rudolf Böttger (painter)

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Rudolf Böttger (born July 4, 1887 in Tachau , † January 28, 1973 in Regensburg ) was an Austrian painter .

life and work

Training and first successes

From 1905 to 1910 Rudolf Böttger studied at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna . His teachers at that time were in particular Franz Rumpler and Alfred Cossmann . In 1910 he attended the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich for several months before settling in Vienna as a freelance artist in 1911 .

During World War I he was an officer in Russia and was wounded several times.

"After the end of the war, Böttger became a member of the Vienna Artists' Cooperative, and in 1919 he took part in a collective exhibition in the 'Künstlerhaus' for the first time."

Between 1924 and 1931, Böttger spent the summers again and again in his birthplace Tachau. During this time, sacred paintings were also made for Tachau, some of which are still there today. At this time Böttger began to establish himself as an artist and, especially from around 1930, he made a name for himself as a portraitist. The portrayed include u. a. Robert Heger , Wenzeslaus von Gleispach , Anna von Bahr-Mildenburg , Hanns Blaschke , Josef Weinheber , Hans Mayer , Hermann Neubacher , Rudolf Maresch .

In 1934 Böttger was appointed professor hc by the Vienna Academy .

Period of the Third Reich

Böttger was an illegal member of the NSDAP even before 1938 (membership number 6.130.519, official admission on May 1, 1938), which he himself justifies with his Sudeten German origins. After the annexation of Austria , Böttger took on leading positions in art and cultural policy. Among other things, he was responsible for the “painting” section in Vienna's Gau Culture Council, he also gave lectures, took on representative tasks “and regularly attended receptions and events by the culture-loving Gauleiter Baldur von Schirach [...].” In addition, the connection with Austria enabled him to gain a broader artistic connection Activity in the Reich territory, which is particularly evident from the active participation in the Great German Art Exhibitions in Munich.

At this time Böttger was in contact with numerous people from the cultural life of the time. Among them were Franz Karl Ginzkey , Robert Hohlbaum , Josef Wenter , Josef Weinheber , Wilhelm Fraß , Rudolf Hermann Eisenmenger , and his former teacher Alfred Cossmann .

From autumn 1944 "he reported himself to the Volkssturm and was wounded in the fighting against the Red Army, which conquered the city from April 6th to 13th, near the Südbahnhof." The Viennese studio as well as the artist's apartment were destroyed in the war and remaining goods plundered.

Even after 1945, Böttger did not distance himself from his activities at the time and from his NSDAP membership. Florian Jung writes about this: “On the one hand, due to the connections just described, there is no doubt about Böttger's involvement in Nazi cultural politics, nor does he try to suppress these 'unpleasant' aspects of his biography in his memories. On the other hand, Böttger was already regarded as an important artist before the 'Anschluss' and is therefore not one of those who only achieved greater success with the implementation of National Socialism. "

After 1945

After the Second World War , the wounded Rudolf Böttger was first taken to a military hospital near Deggendorf and then to a military hospital in Metten . He was released in August 1945 and lived in Metten for the next seven years.

From 1948 Böttger was again officially allowed to enter Austria. There he regularly visited friends and acquaintances, whom he sometimes portrayed.

In 1950 Böttger spent a long time with his friend and sponsor Ulla Ekman in Väja, Sweden . This was followed by visits in 1951, 1957 and 1965.

From 1950 onwards, Böttger received more and more commissions for art in architecture , which he was mediated by befriended architects. Such buildings were located in Deggendorf , Hengersberg , Hofkirchen , Neutraubling , Regensburg , Starnberg , Wackersdorf and Weiden .

In 1952 Böttger moved to Regensburg and stayed there until his death. He withdrew more and more from public cultural life because he no longer saw his art ideas represented.

Memberships

After the First World War, Rudolf Böttger became a member of the Vienna Artists' Cooperative. In the Third Reich Böttger was a member of the Reich Chamber of Fine Arts . In 1952 he joined the professional association of visual artists in Regensburg and in 1965 the Munich old artists' cooperative.

Exhibitions (selection)

Throughout his life, Rudolf Böttger took part in numerous group exhibitions and there were also several individual exhibitions on his work.

From 1919 Böttger had numerous exhibitions in Vienna and other cities. In 1925 Böttger took part in the Venice Biennale .

Böttger showed a total of 14 paintings at the Great German Art Exhibitions in the House of German Art in Munich between 1938 and 1940 to 1944. Including u. a. the portraits of Hans Blaschke and Josef Weinheber, as well as work representations and landscapes, which were often animated with files.

In 1938 Böttger took part in the “Third Portrait Exhibition 1938” in the Haus der Kunst in Berlin, which again points to his high standing as a portrait painter at the time.

In 1938/39 Böttger took part in art exhibitions organized by the "Aid Organization for German Fine Arts in the Nazi People's Welfare " in the Berlin House of Art (1938) and in the Zwickau König Albert Museum (1939).

In 1940 Böttger was represented at the “Great Berlin Art Exhibition” in the Haus der Kunst there.

In 1941 Böttger took part with a total of six paintings, six watercolors and a mixed technique in the exhibition “Between Westwall and Maginot Line”, which was shown in the Saarland Museum in Saarbrücken . The exhibition was under the patronage of the Gauleiter and Reich Governor Josef Bürckel .

In July and August 1957, on the occasion of Böttger's 70th birthday, the Vienna Künstlerhaus showed the exhibition “Landscape, People and Animals” with 28 paintings, as well as other watercolors and drawings.

In 1964, the Witikobund organized an exhibition in the small Kolping Hall in Regensburg, mainly with portraits.

In July 1972 the Ostdeutsche Galerie in Regensburg organized a large exhibition with numerous paintings, drawings and watercolors on the artist's 85th birthday.

Purchases

In 1932, the Italian state acquired the painting “Entombment”.

In 1934 the Austrian Chancellor Kurt von Schuschnigg bought two paintings by Böttger.

In 1936 the Hamburg entrepreneur August Brinkmann bought the painting Three Javelin Throwers . Brinkmann met Böttger at the art exhibition for the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. Brinkmann then invited him to Hamburg and other paintings were created.

Further works by Böttger can be found in the Austrian Gallery Belvedere , in the Museum Niederösterreich , and in the Art Forum East German Gallery in Regensburg.

literature

  • Joseph Handl: Rudolf Böttger 85 years . In: Art and the beautiful home, Vol. 84, 1972, p. 451.
  • Gertrud Träger (Ed.): Visual artists from the former Tachau-Pfraumberg district in Egerland . Geretsried 1989, pp. 58-67.
  • Dankmar Trier . In: General Artist Lexicon . The visual artists of all times and peoples (AKL). Volume 12, Saur, Munich a. a. 1995, ISBN 3-598-22752-3 .
  • Florian Jung: The painter Rudolf Böttger in Metten (1945–1952) . In: Deggendorfer Geschichtsblätter Vol. 27, 2005, pp. 315-344.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Entry in the matriculation database .
  2. ↑ Florian Jung: The painter Rudolf Böttger in Metten (1945–1952) . In: Deggendorfer Geschichtsblätter Vol. 27, 2005, p. 317.
  3. ↑ Florian Jung: The painter Rudolf Böttger in Metten (1945–1952) . In: Deggendorfer Geschichtsblätter Vol. 27, 2005, p. 317.
  4. ↑ cf. Florian Jung: The painter Rudolf Böttger in Metten (1945–1952) . In: Deggendorfer Geschichtsblätter Vol. 27, 2005, p. 319.
  5. ↑ Florian Jung: The painter Rudolf Böttger in Metten (1945–1952) . In: Deggendorfer Geschichtsblätter Vol. 27, 2005, p. 319f.
  6. ↑ Florian Jung: The painter Rudolf Böttger in Metten (1945–1952) . In: Deggendorfer Geschichtsblätter Vol. 27, 2005, p. 320.
  7. ↑ cf. Florian Jung: The painter Rudolf Böttger in Metten (1945–1952) . In: Deggendorfer Geschichtsblätter Vol. 27, 2005, pp. 320f.
  8. ↑ http://www.gdk-research.de/de/obj19403956.html
  9. ↑ http://www.gdk-research.de/de/obj19363653.html
  10. ↑ Florian Jung: The painter Rudolf Böttger in Metten (1945–1952) . In: Deggendorfer Geschichtsblätter Vol. 27, 2005, p. 318.
  11. ↑ Florian Jung: The painter Rudolf Böttger in Metten (1945–1952). In: Deggendorfer Geschichtsblätter Vol. 27, 2005, p. 317.
personal data
SURNAME Böttger, Rudolf
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Austrian painter
DATE OF BIRTH 4th July 1887
PLACE OF BIRTH Tachau
DATE OF DEATH January 28, 1973
Place of death regensburg