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BOOKPLATES THE WORLD OF EX-LIBRIS |
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A historical retrospective 3 MODERN TIMES |
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3d THE 1900s: GERMANY AND JUGENDSTIL 1880-1918 |
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3d/12. Hermann Hirzel (ARG/D, 1864-1939)  THEKLA
GATTEL, P1, 75 x 39, 1900.
Born in Argentina, Hirzel worked in Berlin. This ex-libris is interesting as an early example of the abstraction of Jugendstil decoration which led to the geometry of Art Déco. |
3d/13. Bernhard Pankok (D, 1872-1943) DR. KARL FRANK,
C3 + C5, 84 x 60, 1904. GM7979.
A scarce proof in red of one of the several ex-libris produced by this important artist, designer and architect, who also worked with Jugend. Pankok was a founder member of the Associated Workshops for Applied Arts in Munich. The theme here is again nudity as a symbol of freedom, on the difficult path towards a goal which is hard to attain. |
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3d/14. Heinrich Vogeler (D, 1872-1942) BERTHA BIENERT,
C3, 131 x 80, c.1910.
With Nägele, Vogeler is the modern German artist whose ex-libris – he made 120 bookplates – fetch the highest prices on the market today. This is doubtless a fine Art Nouveau image, with typical use of violets as decorative elements, but a number of collectors consider that Vogeler’s work is overrated. Rilke, however, was an admirer of Vogeler’s work, and the artist was a member of the important Worpsweder group. |
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3d/15. Richard Müller (D, 1874-1954) LEONHARD FANTO,
C2 + C3, 77 x 143, 1911.
While some artists were producing charming Art Nouveau vignettes, others, like the little known Austrian-born Müller who lived and worked in Dresden, made strong early surrealist images such as this beheaded body of Medusa. This is one of the earliest examples of the school which included Schenke, M. E. Philipp, Erler, and others whose work we shall see later. |
3d/16. Carl Streller (D, 1889-) KURT VON DER MüHLEN,
C3/2, 122 x 98, 1912. GM 11222.
Streller was born in London and settled in Germany, where he produced in Leipzig a large graphic opus, of which a substantial number of ex-libris. He was influenced by Klinger, who taught for some years at the Leipzig Academy. |
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3d/17. Reinhold Nägele (D, 1884-1972) ADRIENNE VON
BüLOW, C3, 120 x 85, 1912.
Nägele was an autodidact. He worked until 1937 in Stuttgart and then moved to the USA. His ex-libris are pearls, full of humour and fun, avidly sought by collectors. This print was formerly in the collection of Carlyle Baer, USA. |
3d/18. Willy Münch-Khe (D, 1885-1961) WALTHER
STOHMAN-TIETZ, P4, 140 x 112, 1912.
Author of only a few ex-libris , the graphic artist and illustrator Münch-Khe used gold in this fine Jugendstil bookplate, a relatively rare feature. Artists who also used gold were Mathilde Ade, Orlik, Otakar Stafl, Jessie M. King and a few others. They are typical of the period. |
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3d/19. Otto Ubbelohde (D, 1867-1922) DR WILLY TROPP,
C3, 152 x 89, 1914. GM 11810.
Ubbelohde is rightly considered the master of engraved landscape in ex-libris. He designed more than 250 bookplates, of which some 70 are etchings. |
3d/20. Oscar Graf (D, 1873-1957) FRANZ LüSCHER, C3, 120
x 110, c.1912.
An unusual approach to mountaineering, or might it be Graf’s view of the Alpine native? More likely, it is again an allegorical rendering of the same idea that we have already encountered in plate 3d/13. |
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3d/21. André Lambert (D, 1884-1929) HéLèNE NETTER,
C3 + C5, 122 x 95, 1916. GM 6494.
Of French origin, Lambert worked in Stuttgart. Aquatint, used to produce the flat coloured surfaces, dominate in this bookplate; etching was used for the name and for the lines which define the image. |
3d/22. Hugo Hoeppener (‘Fidus’, D, 1868-1947) WILHELM
SCHWANER, P1, 119 x 85, 1905. GM 2614.
The designer Fidus has a distinct style and his ex-libris are very easy to recognise, often based on Germanic legends and history. Note that the swastika is pointing clockwise, an ancient symbol which has nothing to do with the counter-clockwise emblem of Nazism. |
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3d/23. Marcus Behmer (D, 1879-1958) GABRIELLE REUTER,
P1, 105 x 82, 1914.
Behmer’s ex-libris, also prized by collectors, are usually more of the type conceived to be pasted in books than collector’s pieces. Many were wood engravings, and those which were produced by industrial techniques were made to look like wood engravings. |
3d/24. Hans Volkert (D, 1878-?) Richard Andreae, P1,
103 x 71, 1918. GM12294.
The graphic artist and medal engraver Volkert produced a substantial ex-libris opus, with many charming images of children. |
End of 3d
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