Wilhelm Köglsperger

Wilhelm Köglsperger (born September 5, 1887 in Aibling ; † February 22, 1972 ibid) was a German cabinet maker, restorer and wood sculptor. He created among other things the three wooden altars of Christ the King Church of Wildenwart , Upper Bavaria and was involved in the restoration of the Cuvilliés Theater participates in Munich after the Second World War.

family

Well-known representatives of the Kögelsberger family of artists (also Kögelsperger or Köglsperger) - such as Philipp Jakob Kögelsperger - worked as court bricklayer foremen in Munich as early as the 18th century. Wilhelm Köglsperger's great-great-great-grandfather Andreas Eisenreich already had a kistlererei in Aibling around 1750 . His son-in-law Christoph Kögelsperger and his descendants continued to run the family business. Christoph Köglsperger carved, among other things, the side altars of the Sebastianikirche in Aibling and the confessionals in Heilig Kreuz near Rosenheim.

Life

Wilhelm Köglsperger was born in 1887 as the ninth of eleven children of Max and Elise Kögelsperger in the carpenter's workshop in Aibling 305 (today Bahnhofstrasse 8). On July 4, 1900, he joined his parents' company as an apprentice and learned the carpentry trade. But he felt more drawn to artistic work and in Munich, against all opposition from his father, acquired the first knowledge and skills of carving. His teacher from 1905 to 1910 was Wilhelm Klippel , who worked for Ludwig II for 15 years and was involved in the work on the facade of Linderhof Palace and the large gallery of Herrenchiemsee Palace . With him Wilhelm Köglsperger was introduced to the baroque art of carving, which remained his greatest joy for life. As an art-loving young man, he walked to Italy at the age of 17 to learn from the masters of the past. After his father's death in October 1910 and his master craftsman's examination in 1911, he took over his father's carpentry and, together with his mother, the furniture showroom. In addition to the day-to-day business of furniture construction, he was given great artistic tasks from a young age. So he was allowed to design the meeting room of the royal Bavarian district court in Aibling. He was also active as a restorer in churches, monasteries and castles. According to Köglsperger's own words, there is hardly a church in the home area that does not have something that has been renewed, supplemented or, especially in later years, newly created by his hand. In the 1930s he was entrusted with the production of the three altars for the Christ the King's Church in Wildenwart, which was used as a memorial church for King Ludwig III. and his wife Marie Therese was built.

During the war years from 1939 to 1945 he modeled at the trade school in Munich and attended the Academy of Fine Arts until it was destroyed in 1945.

After the war, he made a significant contribution to the restoration of the Old Residence Theater in Munich (Cuvilliés Theater) and received, among other things, the Federal Medal of Merit .

When he retired, he downsized his workshop and rented out part of the premises. He worked as an artist, restorer and art collector until his death.

Wilhelm Köglsperger died on February 22, 1972 at the age of 84 in Bad Aibling. In his funeral address, the mayor of Bad Aiblingen at the time recognized him as an artist whose life's task had been to preserve valuable cultural assets from decay and to create new things in continuation of old traditions. Wilhelm Köglsperger died without a successor.

Services

The most famous achievements of Wilhelm Köglsperger include:

• Design of the meeting room of the royal Bavarian district court in Aibling (completion 1917)
• Production of the three wooden altars for the Christ the King's Church in Wildenwart around 1938
• New production of a 17 meter long choir stalls for the house chapel and participation in the establishment of the brother chapel in Ettal Abbey
• Participation in the restoration of the Old Residence Theater in Munich (Cuvilliés Theater). For this achievement, among other things, he received the Federal Merit Medal in 1971

literature

1. ^ Georg Dehio, Handbook of German Art Monuments, Bavaria IV: Munich and Upper Bavaria. Deutscher Kunstverlag, Munich and Berlin 2002
2. ↑ ^{a b c} Wilhelm Köglsperger - The last of an old family of craftsmen. In: Aiblinger Zeitung. May 20, 1950
3. ↑ Dr. Edith Prochazka: Once upon a time - a carver from Bad Aibling. In: Stadt-Journal Bad Aibling. January 1999, p. 16
4. ↑ ^{a b c d} In the workshop and house of a carver. In: Aiblinger Zeitung. December 3, 1941
5. ↑ Wilhelm Köglsperger - a life for art. In: Mangfallbote. July 6, 1950
6. ↑ ^{a b} Medal of Merit for Kögelsperger. In: Mangfallbote. July 14, 1971
7. ^ Obituary by Mayor Hans Falter. In: Mangfallbote. 26./27. February 1972
8. ↑ Christkoenigskirche , accessed on September 1, 2013
9. ↑ Preserving cultural assets from decay - Wilhelm Köglsperger a virtuoso in his field. In: Mangfallbote. 5th September 2012