Heinrich "Heiner" Egersdörfer (1853

Nuremberg Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...

, Germany - 29 April 1915 St. Pancras,

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

), was a German-born artist, illustrator and cartoonist who settled in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. Coming from a family of artistic talent (his brothers Andreas Egersdörfer (1866-1914) and Konrad Egersdörfer (1868-) were both accomplished artists and both died in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

), he was trained as a

lithographer Lithography () is a planographic method of printing originally based on the immiscibility of oil and water. The printing is from a stone (lithographic limestone) or a metal plate with a smooth surface. It was invented in 1796 by the German a ...

in Germany and worked for the ''Leipziger Illustrierten Zeitung''. He took part in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, and then worked in England, before emigrating to South Africa in 1879. In 1884, he and his partners founded ''The South African Illustrated News'' in

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

. His sketches and drawings, often in a light-hearted vein, are an invaluable record of life in the

Cape Colony The Cape Colony ( nl, Kaapkolonie), also known as the Cape of Good Hope, was a British Empire, British colony in present-day South Africa named after the Cape of Good Hope, which existed from 1795 to 1802, and again from 1806 to 1910, when i ...

and were often used in local publications. ''The South African Illustrated News'' came to an end in 1885 and he left for Australia, to return ten years later. The economic situation had improved during his absence, and he travelled to Kimberley, the

Witwatersrand The Witwatersrand () (locally the Rand or, less commonly, the Reef) is a , north-facing scarp in South Africa. It consists of a hard, erosion-resistant quartzite metamorphic rock, over which several north-flowing rivers form waterfalls, which ...

and

Rhodesia Rhodesia (, ), officially from 1970 the Republic of Rhodesia, was an unrecognised state in Southern Africa from 1965 to 1979, equivalent in territory to modern Zimbabwe. Rhodesia was the ''de facto'' successor state to the British colony of S ...

. He started painting wildlife studies, which found a ready market and his work appeared in The Cape Argus, ''The Owl'' and other periodicals. He depicted numerous incidents and scenes from the

Anglo-Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sout ...

, some of which were published in ''The South African Review Book of 50 Famous Cartoons - A Unique Souvenir of the Anglo-Boer War 1899-1900''. Between 1899 and 1901 he acted as local correspondent for ''

The Graphic ''The Graphic'' was a British weekly illustrated newspaper, first published on 4 December 1869 by William Luson Thomas's company Illustrated Newspapers Ltd. Thomas's brother Lewis Samuel Thomas was a co-founder. The premature death of the latt ...

'', many of his illustrations appearing in this weekly until 1908. In 1902 and 1903, he exhibited with the South African Society of Artists (SASA). Egersdörfer's original illustrations can be found in many South African art galleries and in the

Africana Museum Museum Africa or MuseuMAfricA (formerly known as the Africana Museum) is an historical museum in Newtown, Johannesburg, South Africa. History The museum was established in 1933, when the Johannesburg Public Library bought a large quantity of ...

. His only known photograph appeared in ''The Cape Argus Weekly Edition'' supplement on "Famous South African Artists" on 26 December 1906. With the death in Cape Town of his wife, Mary Jane Creaney in 1901(?1903), and that of his son Heinrich (1896-1910), and beset by financial problems, he returned to Europe and London where he died in 1915. He was survived by his first son, Friedrich, born in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Australia on 13 June 1894, died 6 November 1970.

References

Egersdörfer genealogy
* Rosenthal, Eric. ''Heinrich Egersdörfer'' (Nasionale Boekhandel, Cape Town, 1960)

Bibliography

*Egersdörfer, Heinrich. ''The South African Review book of 50 famous cartoons: A unique souvenir of the Anglo-Boer War, 1899-1900'' (Publisher: W.A. Richards 1900) ASIN: B0008COXV2

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Egersdorfer, Heinrich German draughtsmen German illustrators Artists from Nuremberg South African artists 1853 births 1915 deaths German emigrants to South Africa