Foni (Alphonse) Tissen (1909–1975) was a
Luxembourg
Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
schoolteacher and artist who is remembered principally for his
hyperrealistic,
darkly humorous paintings, many of which were self-portraits.
Early life and education
Tissen was born on 3 June 1909 in
Rumelange
Rumelange ( lb, Rëmeleng ; german: Rümelingen) is a commune with town status in south-western Luxembourg, on the border with France.
Populated places
The commune consists of the following villages:
* Rumelange
* Haut-Tétange (lieu-dit)
Pop ...
in the south of Luxembourg. After primary school in Rumelange, he attended the Lycée Poincaré in
Nancy before studying painting and architecture at the
Ecole des Beaux-Arts in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
. There he met the Luxembourg sculptor
Auguste Trémont Auguste Nicolas Trémont (31 December 1892 – 23 October 1980) was a Luxembourger painter, sculptor, and medallist. He specialised in sculptures of animals, with a particular emphasis on big cats.
Life
After spending his childhood in Luxembourg ...
who not only became a key advisor but a close friend for the rest of his life. In 1929, he embarked on a lengthy world trip on a passenger liner before continuing his studies a few years later in
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...
and
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
.
Career
In 1939, together with other artists, he represented Luxembourg at the
1939 New York World's Fair. Back in Luxembourg where he wanted to be a teacher, he discovered that his French qualifications were not valid and he had to resit his school leaving certificate before he could be appointed. In September 1942, after taking part in the strike against the
German occupation
German-occupied Europe refers to the sovereign countries of Europe which were wholly or partly occupied and civil-occupied (including puppet governments) by the military forces and the government of Nazi Germany at various times between 1939 an ...
, he was deported together with seven other teachers to the
Hinzert concentration camp
Hinzert was a concentration camp in Nazi Germany, in what is now Rhineland-Palatinate, from the border with Luxembourg.
Between 1939 and 1945, 13,600 political prisoners between the ages of 13 and 80 were imprisoned at Hinzert. Many were in tr ...
where the inhuman conditions were to exert a profound influence on his work, calling for an ironic level of introspection.
["Foni Tissen: Dossier de Presse"](_blank)
. Retrieved 19 December 2010.
Returning to Luxembourg after the war, he taught at the lycée for boys in Esch-sur-Alzette where he deeply impressed his students. His art was not confined to painting but extended to mosaics, frescos, stained glass windows and ceramics, convinced as he was that art in all its forms could contribute to social consolidation. In his workshop, posters, plaques, flags, logos, medals and stamps were produced, some still in use today. An effective public speaker, he also became an active member of several art associations including ''Art Vivant'' in
Differdange
Differdange ( lb, Déifferdeng or (locally) ; german: Differdingen) is a commune with town status in south-western Luxembourg, west from the country's capital. It lies near the borders with Belgium and France and it is located in the canton ...
and ''Amitiés Françaises du Val de Kayl''.
Artistic work
Tissen aimed to spread art to all parts of society in order to "elevate the spirit of man" as he put it. While his postage stamps, posters and the logo for the emergency services have become part of Luxembourg's collective memory, his close attachment to his native Rumelange and the area's Red Rocks can be seen in his landscapes and engravings.
["Foni Tissen (1909-1975)"](_blank)
, ''European Institute of Cultural Routes''. Retrieved 19 December 2010.
He illustrated the 1972 Luxembourg postage stamp commemorating the 100th anniversary of the publication of ''
Renart
Reynard the Fox is a literary cycle of medieval allegorical Dutch, English, French and German fables. The first extant versions of the cycle date from the second half of the 12th century. The genre was popular throughout the Late Middle Ages, ...
''.
The most typical part of his work is however the series of paintings he referred to as his ''Maennerscher'' or little men, many of them self-portraits constituting a human one-man comedy. The symbols he uses guide the spectator to the extensive workings of his imagination. All in all, his work reveals his search for what he called "the truth which is beauty and sincerity".
When he died in Luxembourg City on 5 February 1975, Tissen left an extensive collection of paintings and other artistic artifacts, most of which are presented in the commemorative book ''Rétrospective Foni Tissen 100 Joer''.
"Rétrospective Foni Tissen 100 Joer"
. Retrieved 19 December 2010.
External links
Luxemburger Wort's "100 Jahre Foni Tissen"
Virtual gallery for Foni Tissen's 100th anniversary
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tissen, Foni
1909 births
1975 deaths
20th-century Luxembourgian painters
20th-century male artists
Luxembourgian artists
Luxembourgian educators
Male painters