Christoph Meckel (12 June 1935 – 29 January 2020) was a German author and graphic artist. He received awards for his works which connect illustrations with the written text, sometimes texts by others.

Life

Born in Berlin, Meckel spent his youth there, in

Erfurt Erfurt () is the capital and largest city in the Central German state of Thuringia. It is located in the wide valley of the Gera river (progression: ), in the southern part of the Thuringian Basin, north of the Thuringian Forest. It sits i ...

and in Freiburg im Breisgau, where he attended Gymnasium. In 1954/55 he studied graphic art at the Academy of Art in Freiburg im Breisgau, and in 1956 at the Academy of Art in München. Since 1956 he worked as both an author and graphic artist. His first poem appeared that year. He traveled extensively through Europe, Africa, and America and lived in Oetingen in

Markgräflerland Markgräflerland () is a region in the southwest of Germany, in the south of the German federal state of Baden-Württemberg, located between the Breisgau in the north and the Black Forest in the east; adjacent to west with France and in the south ...

, in Berlin, in southern France, and in

Tuscany it, Toscano (man) it, Toscana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Citizenship , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = Italian , demogra ...

. His graphic work has appeared in numerous exhibitions. Until his withdrawal in 1997, Meckel was a member of the

PEN A pen is a common writing instrument that applies ink to a surface, usually paper, for writing or drawing. Early pens such as reed pens, quill pens, dip pens and ruling pens held a small amount of ink on a nib or in a small void or cavity wh ...

Center of the

Federal Republic of Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated between ...

. He was a member of the

Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Literatur The Academy of Sciences and Literature (german: Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Literatur Mainz, AdW Mainz) is a scientific academy in Mainz, Germany. It was established in 1949 on an initiative of Alfred Döblin. The academy's goal is to su ...

Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-west, with Ma ...

and the Deutschen Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung in Darmstadt. In her book "For Your Own Good: Hidden Cruelty in Childrearing and the Roots of Violence" Alice Miller provides quotes of Meckel on his childhood: Punishment followed on a grand scale. For ten days, an unconscionable length of time, my father blessed the palms of his child's outstretched four-year-old hands with a sharp twitch. Seven strokes a day on each hand: that makes one hundred and forty strokes and then some. This put an end to the child's innocence. Whatever it was that happened in Paradise involving Adam, Eve, Lilith, the serpent, and the apple, the well-deserved Biblical thunderbolt of prehistoric times, the roar of the Almighty and His pointed finger signifying expulsion – I know nothing about all that. It was my father who drove me out of paradise. Meckel died in Freiburg on 29 January 2020, aged 84.

Awards

Meckel received numerous literary prizes, including: * 1959 Immermann Prize * 1966 Preis ''Junge Generation'' of the

Berliner Kunstpreis The ''Berliner Kunstpreis'' (Berlin Art Prize), officially Großer Berliner Kunstpreis, is a prize for the arts by the City of Berlin. It was first awarded in 1948 in several fields of art. Since 1971, it has been awarded by the Academy of Arts ( ...

* 1974 Reinhold-Schneider-Preis * 1978 Rainer-Maria-Rilke-Preis für Lyrik * 1981

Literaturpreis der Stadt Bremen The Bremen Literature Prize (german: link=no, Literaturpreis der Stadt Bremen, literally: Literature Prize of the city of Bremen) is a German literary award. The prize money is €25,000 (Förderpreis: €6,000). Recipients *1954 Heinrich Schm ...

, Ernst-Meister-Preis für Lyrik * 1982 * 1993

Kasseler Literaturpreis The Kassel Literary Prize for Grotesque Humor (''Kasseler Literaturpreis für grotesken Humor''), established 1985, is an annual prize awarded by the city of Kassel and the Brückner-Kühner foundation in recognition of "grotesque and comic work" ...

* 2003

Joseph-Breitbach-Preis Joseph-Breitbach-Preis (Joseph Breitbach Prize) is a literary prize awarded by the Akademie der Wissenschaften und der Literatur Mainz (Academy of Sciences and Literature of Mainz), in Germany and the Joseph Breitbach Foundation. Established in ...

* 2005 Schiller Ring of the Deutsche Schillerstiftung, Weimar * 2006 International Literary Award Novi Sad (Serbia) * 2016 Hölty Prize, Hanover * 2018 Johann-Peter-Hebel-Preis * 2020 Antiquaria Prize

Works

* ''Tarnkappe'', München 1956 * ''Hotel für Schlafwandler'', Stierstadt im Taunus 1958 * ''Moël'', Hamburg .a.1959 * ''Nebelhörner'', Stuttgart 1959 * ''Der Krieg'', Hamburg .a.1960 * ''Manifest der Toten'', Stierstadt im Taunus 1960 * ''Die Stadt'', Hamburg .a.1960 * ''Welttheater'', Hamburg .a.1960 * ''Im Land der Umbramauten'', Stuttgart 1961 * ''Der Turm'', Hamburg .a.1961 * ''Wildnisse'', Frankfurt a. M. 1962 * ''Dunkler Sommer und Musikantenknochen'', Berlin 1964 * ''Gedichtbilderbuch'', Stierstadt im Taunus 1964 * ''Gwili und Punk'', Groningen 1965 * ''Lyrik, Prosa, Graphik aus zehn Jahren'', München 1965 * ''Das Meer'', München 1965 * ''Tullipan'', Berlin 1965 * ''Die Savannen'', Bonn 1966 * ''Die Noticen des Feuerwerkers Christopher Magalan'', Berlin 1966 * ''Bei Lebzeiten zu singen'', Berlin 1967 * ''Die Dummheit liefert uns ans Messer'', Berlin 1967 (zusammen mit Volker von Törne) * ''Der glückliche Magier'', Baden-Baden 1967 * ''Der Wind, der dich weckt, der Wind im Garten'', Neuwied .a.1967 * ''In der Tinte'', Berlin 1968 * ''Amüsierpapiere oder Bilder aus Phantasus' Bauchladen'', München 1969 * ''Die Balladen des Thomas Balkan'', Berlin 1969 * ''Bilderbotschaften'', München 1969 * ''Gedichte aus Biafra'', Berlin .a.1969 * ''Jasnados Nachtlied'', Freiburg 1969 * ''Eine Seite aus dem Paradiesbuch'', Berlin 1969 * ''You're welcome'', Berlin 1969 * ''Kraut und Gehilfe'', Berlin-Friedenau 1970 * ''Zettelphilipp'', Berlin 1970 * ''Die Geschichte der Geschichten'', München 1971 * ''Werkauswahl'', München 1971 * ''Lieder aus dem Dreckloch'', Stierstadt (im Taunus) 1972 * ''Verschiedene Tätigkeiten'', Stuttgart 1972 * ''Bockshorn'', München 1973 * ''Kranich'', Düsseldorf 1973 * ''Wen es angeht'', Düsseldorf 1974 * ''Wer viel fragt, kriegt viel gesagt'', München 1974 (zusammen mit Alfons Schweiggert) * ''Flaschenpost für eine Sintflut'', Berlin 1975 * ''Die Gestalt am Ende des Grundstücks'', Düsseldorf 1975 * ''Nachtessen'', Berlin 1975 * ''Der Strom'', Leverkusen 1976 * ''Liebesgedichte'', Berlin 1977 * ''Erinnerung an Johannes Bobrowski'', Düsseldorf 1978 * ''Licht'', München 1978 * ''Über das Fragmentarische'', Mainz 1978 * ''Ausgewählte Gedichte'', Königstein/Ts. 1979 * ''Hab aufgelesen meine Spuren'', Berlin 1979 * ''Säure'', Düsseldorf 1979 * ''Das Dings da'', Düsseldorf 1980 * ''Die Sachen der Liebe'', Berlin .a.1980 * ''Suchbild: über meinen Vater'', Düsseldorf 1980 * ''Tunifers Erinnerungen und andere Erzählungen'', Frankfurt am Main 1980 * ''Das bucklicht Männlein'', Frankfurt am Main 1981 * ''Jedes Wort hat die Chance einen Anfang zu machen'', München 1981 * ''Nachricht für Baratynski'', München .a.1981 * ''Anabasis'', München .a.1982 * ''Der wahre Muftoni'', München .a.1982 * ''Ein roter Faden'', München .a.1983 * ''Sein Herz ist sein Rücken'', Karlsruhe 1983 * ''Zeichnungen und Bilder'', Berlin 1983 * ''Jahreszeiten'', Berlin 1984 * ''Souterrain'', München .a.1984 * ''Bericht zur Entstehung einer Weltkomödie'', München .a.1985 * ''Plunder'', München .a.1986 * ''Sieben Blätter für Monsieur Bernstein'', Stuttgart 1986 * ''Anzahlung auf ein Glas Wasser'', München .a.1987 * ''Berliner Doodles'', Berlin 1987 * ''Das Buch Jubal'', Düsseldorf 1987 * ''Christoph Meckel'', Remagen-Rolandseck 1987 * ''Limbo'', Mainz 1987 * ''Hundert Gedichte'', München .a.1988 * ''Die Kirschbäume'', Warmbronn 1988 * ''Pferdefuß'', Ravensburg 1988 * ''Das Buch Shiralee'', Düsseldorf 1989 * ''Von den Luftgeschäften der Poesie'', Frankfurt am Main 1989 * ''Weltwundertüte voll Stückwerk'', Lichtenfels 1989 * ''Vakuum'', Warmbronn 1990 * ''Container'', Berlin 1991 * ''Hans im Glück'', Köln 1991 * ''Jemel'', Leipzig 1991 * ''Die Messingstadt'', München .a.1991 * ''Shalamuns Papiere'', München .a.1992 * ''Votiv'', Warmbronn 1992 * ''Schlammfang'', Düsseldorf 1993 * ''Stein'', Frauenfeld 1993 * ''Archipel'', Düsseldorf 1994 * ''Sidus scalae'', Warmbronn 1995 * ''Gesang vom unterbrochenen Satz'', München .a.1995 * ''Eine Hängematte voll Schnee'', Berlin 1995 * ''Immer wieder träume ich Bücher'', Warmbronn 1995 * ''Nachtmantel'', Düsseldorf 1996 * ''Merkmalminiaturen'', Stuttgart 1997 * ''Trümmer des Schmetterlings'', Ostfildern vor Stuttgart 1997 * ''Ein unbekannter Mensch'', München .a.1997 * ''Dichter und andere Gesellen'', München .a.1998 * ''Jul Miller'', Gifkendorf 1998 * ''Komm in das Haus'', München .a.1998 * ''Fontany im Sande'', Warmbronn 1999 * ''Die Ruine des Präsidentenpalastes'', Düsseldorf 2000 * ''Schöllkopf'', Warmbronn 2000 * ''Zähne'', München .a.2000 * ''Blut im Schuh'', Lüneburg 2001 * ''Nacht bleibt draußen und trinkt Regen'', Passau 2002 * ''Suchbild: meine Mutter'', München .a.2002 * ''Ungefähr ohne Tod im Schatten der Bäume'', München .a.2003

Exhibition catalogues

* ''Christoph Meckel, Radierungen, Holzschnitte, Zeichnungen, Graphik-Zyklen, Bücher'', München 1965 * ''Christoph Meckel, Handzeichnungen, Radierungen, Bücher'', München 1971 * ''The graphic work of Christoph Meckel'', Austin, Tex. 1973 * ''Christoph Meckel, Bilder, Graphik'', Hamburg 1976 * ''Christoph Meckel & Christopher Middleton, Bilderbücher 1968/1978'', Berlin 1979 * ''Christoph Meckel, Zeichnungen, Radierungen'',

Reutlingen Reutlingen (; Swabian: ''Reitlenga'') is a city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is the capital of the eponymous district of Reutlingen. As of June 2018, it has a population of 115,818. Reutlingen has a university of applied sciences, which ...

1984 * ''Christoph Meckel, Bilder, Bücher, Bilderbücher'', Bamberg 1986 * ''Christoph Meckel, Zeichnungen, Bilder, Radierungen'',

Freiburg Freiburg im Breisgau (; abbreviated as Freiburg i. Br. or Freiburg i. B.; Low Alemannic: ''Friburg im Brisgau''), commonly referred to as Freiburg, is an independent city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. With a population of about 230,000 (as o ...

1987 * ''Christoph Meckel, Zeichnungen und Graphik'', Bergisch Gladbach 1987 * ''Christoph Meckel'', Frankfurt am Main, 1988 * ''Christoph Meckel, Radierungen'', Freiburg i. Br. 1990 * ''Christoph Meckel, Manuskriptbilder 1962 - 1992'', Freiburg 1992 * ''Christoph Meckel, Neue Zeichnungen und Grafik'', Saarbrücken 1997 * ''Christoph Meckel, Beginn eines Sommers'', Troisdorf 2001

Publications

* ''Alles andere steht geschrieben'', Kiel 1993 *

Georg Heym Georg Theodor Franz Artur Heym (30 October 1887 – 16 January 1912) was a German writer. He is particularly known for his poetry, representative of early Expressionism. Biography Heym was born in Hirschberg, Lower Silesia, in 1887 to He ...

: ''Gedichte'', Frankfurt a.M. 1968 * ''Vier Tage im Mai'', Waldkirch 1989 * ''Der Vogel fährt empor als kleiner Rauch'', Göttingen 1995 * ''Das zahnlos geschlagene Wort'', Düsseldorf 1980

Translations

* Avraham Ben-Yitzhak: ''Es entfernten sich die Dinge'', München .a.1994 * : ''Arbeiten auf Papier'', Reinbek bei Hamburg 1992 * : ''Wüstenginster'', München .a.1990

Illustrated works

* ''Allgemeine Erklärung der Menschenrechte'', Frankfurt am Main 1974 * Erich Arendt: ''Reise in die Provence'', Darmstadt 1983 * : ''Worte'', Köln 1963 * : ''Die Zöglinge des Herrn Glasenapp'', Düsseldorf 1996 * Bertolt Brecht: ''Bertolt Brechts Hauspostille'', Frankfurt/M. 1966 * Wolfgang Dick: ''Nachtstücke - versetzbar'', Stierstadt im Taunus 1965 * : ''Fahrradklingel'', Berlin 1979 * : ''Träume'', Warmbronn 1987 * Christopher Middleton: ''Wie wir Großmutter zum Markt bringen'', Stierstadt i. Ts. 1970 * : ''Du kommen um sieben'', Berlin 1980 * ''Poetische Grabschriften'', Frankfurt am Main 1987 * ''Die Rechte des Kindes'', Ravensburg 1994 * Ruth Reichstein: ''Lichterloh'', Frauenfeld 1988 * Christa Reinig: ''Die Ballade vom blutigen Bomme'', Düsseldorf 1972 *

Voltaire François-Marie Arouet (; 21 November 169430 May 1778) was a French Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher. Known by his ''nom de plume'' M. de Voltaire (; also ; ), he was famous for his wit, and his criticism of Christianity—es ...

: ''Candide oder der Optimismus; Zadig oder das Schicksal; Der weiße Stier'', Köln 1964

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Meckel, Christoph 1935 births 2020 deaths German graphic designers German artists Writers from Berlin German-language poets German male poets