22 July 1881, Wunsiedel, Bavaria – 14 February 1965, Wien
Son of a carpenter, he was an engraver, lithographer, illustrator and painter.
He studied in Munich, between 1896 and 1897. He traveled in Italy with his brother, in 1897, after the mother’s death where he could appreciate the Roman archaelogy and the Vatican’s treasures. They made a living out of portraying. He then became student in the monastery of Tanzenberg near Klagenfurt. He traveled to Wien, in 1899, where he enrolled the art school. Active as a designer for the Wiener Werkstätte, newly founded between 1903 and 1910.
He traveled alongside Egon Schiele to Cesky Krumlov, then moves to Istria in 1914 because of the tense political environment in Austria. He spent his last years in Carinthia and mostly in Wien, where he died. A deep love for nature led him to concetrate on the study of animals.
During the two wars and the second post-war he received many awards. He received a lifelong honorary gift from the Austrian federal president in 1955, the “Golden Laurel” for his 75th birthday in 1956 from the Society of Fine Artists of Wien, the bronze medal for the services to the Republic of Austria and a sponsorship prize in 1957, the medal of honor of the federal capital of Wien in 1961 and in 1964 he became honorary member of the Künstlerhaus of Wien.
