Günter Meißner (3 July 1936 – 19 November 2015) was a German
art historian
Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today ...
, who became known as
editor-in-chief
An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies.
The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...
and publisher of the ''
Allgemeines Künstlerlexikon
Thieme-Becker is a German biographical dictionary of artists.
Thieme-Becker
The dictionary was begun under the editorship of Ulrich Thieme (1865–1922) (volumes one to fifteen) and Felix Becker (1864–1928) (volumes one to four). It was complet ...
''.
Life
Born in
Hanover
Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...
, Meißner studierte am Kunsthistorischen Institut der
Leipzig University
Leipzig University (german: Universität Leipzig), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 December ...
, hier erhielt er 1958 sein Diplom und wurde 1962 mit einer Dissertation über den Maler
Hans Baluschek
Hans Baluschek (9 May 1870 – 28 September 1935) was a German painter, graphic artist and writer.
Baluschek was a prominent representative of German Critical Realism, and as such he sought to portray the life of the common people with vivid fra ...
which won him his
doctorate
A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''l ...
. He was then assistant and senior assistant at the institute.
From 1 January 1969, he worked for the publishing house E. A. Seemann in Leipzig on the project of the ''Allgemeines Künstlerlexikon'' and took over the management of the editorial staff of twelve, which was increased to 25 in 1976. The first volume appeared in 1983 and he remained head of the editorial staff until 1992 and co-editor until his death.
In addition to his work on the ''Allgemeines Künstlerlexikon'', he wrote numerous books on art history, including monographs on contemporary painters such as Hans Baluschek,
Rudolf Bredow
Rudolf Bredow (born 2 November 1909 in Berlin, died 17 November 1973 in Bremen), German Post-expressionism, post-expressionist painter, Drafter, draughtsman and art teacher.
Bredow's lifework became famous only after his death. It comprises ca. ...
,
Max Liebermann
Max Liebermann (20 July 1847 – 8 February 1935) was a German painter and printmaker, and one of the leading proponents of Impressionism in Germany and continental Europe. In addition to his activity as an artist, he also assembled an important ...
and
Werner Tübke
Werner Tübke (30 July 1929 in Schönebeck, Germany – 27 May 2004 in Leipzig, Germany) was a German painter, best known for his monumental '' Peasants' War Panorama'' located in Bad Frankenhausen
Bad Frankenhausen (officially: Bad Frankenhaus ...
.
Meißner belonged to the
Begrüßungsgeld
(English: "Welcome money") was, from 1970 until 29 December 1989, a gift from the government of the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) to visitors from the German Democratic Republic (GDR - East Germany). This situation originated with t ...
of the DDR.
In 1978 he was awarded the
Kunstpreis der Stadt Leipzig
From 1959 to 1989, the city of Leipzig awarded the Kunstpreis der Stadt Leipzig, which was given for outstanding merits in the artistic field to persons who promoted the reputation of the city beyond the region: architects, visual artists, compos ...
.
Meißner died at the age of 79.
Publications
* ''Max Liebermann''. Seemann, Leipzig 2008, .
Further reading
* Alfred Langer: ''Kunstliteratur und Reproduktion. 125 Jahre Seemann-Verlag im Dienste der Erforschung und Verbreitung der Kunst''. E. A. Seemann, Leipzig 1983, (with pic).
Günter Meißner
on SXRM
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Meissner, Gunter
German art historians
German publishers (people)
1936 births
2015 deaths
Writers from Hanover