Martin Wolff (19 May 1852,

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

– 6 October 1919, Berlin) was a German sculptor.

Life

He was the only son of sculptor Albert Wolff of

Mecklenburg-Strelitz The Duchy of Mecklenburg-Strelitz was a duchy in northern Germany consisting of the eastern fifth of the historic Mecklenburg region, roughly corresponding with the present-day Mecklenburg-Strelitz district (the former Lordship of Stargard), ...

. From 1871 to 1875, he studied at the

Prussian Academy of Art The Prussian Academy of Arts (German: ''Preußische Akademie der Künste'') was a state arts academy first established in Berlin, Brandenburg, in 1694/1696 by prince-elector Frederick III, in personal union Duke Frederick I of Prussia, and late ...

under

Eduard Daege Eduard Wilhelm Daege (10 April 1805, in Berlin – 6 June 1883, in Berlin) was a German painter who served as Director for both the Prussian Academy of Art and the National Gallery.''Bryan's Dictionary of Painters and Engravers'', ed. by Mic ...

, followed by study trips to Vienna and Italy. His training was completed in his father's studio. In 1880, his figure group "Theseus Finden die Waffen Seines Vaters" (

Theseus Theseus (, ; grc-gre, Θησεύς ) was the mythical king and founder-hero of Athens. The myths surrounding Theseus his journeys, exploits, and friends have provided material for fiction throughout the ages. Theseus is sometimes describe ...

Finding His Father's Weapons) brought him a scholarship to Paris. From 1882 to 1883, he was in Rome and established his own studio upon returning to Berlin. The late 1890s proved to be a hard time for artists and his financial distress was relieved only when he was given a commission to work on the Kaiser's

Siegesallee The Siegesallee (, ''Victory Avenue'') was a broad boulevard in Berlin, Germany. In 1895, Kaiser Wilhelm II ordered and financed the expansion of an existing avenue, to be adorned with a variety of marble statues. Work was completed in 1901. A ...

(Victory Avenue) project, possibly based on his father's reputation. His work earned him the Order of the Crown, Fourth Class. Although he became very successful afterward, he never grew beyond the Academic style taught to him by his father.

Selected major works

* 1889-1898: Bust monuments for notable people who contributed to medicine and public health, at the

Charité The Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin (Charité – Berlin University of Medicine) is one of Europe's largest university hospitals, affiliated with Humboldt University and Free University Berlin. With numerous Collaborative Research Cen ...

, Berlin:

Heinrich Adolf von Bardeleben Heinrich Adolf von Bardeleben (1 March 1819 – 24 September 1895) was a German surgeon born in Frankfurt (Oder). He studied medicine at the Universities of Heidelberg, Giessen, Paris and Berlin, receiving his doctorate in 1841 with a thesis on t ...

(1889),

Eduard Heinrich Henoch Eduard Heinrich Henoch (June 16, 1820 Berlin – August 26, 1910) was a German physician. He taught at the Berlin University (1868–1894). Henoch was of Jewish descent, and was the nephew of Moritz Heinrich Romberg. Work After taking th ...

(1890), (1893),

Ludwig Traube Ludwig Traube may refer to: *Ludwig Traube (physician) (1818–1876), German physician and co-founder of experimental pathology in Germany *Ludwig Traube (palaeographer) (1861–1907), his son, German paleographer {{hndis, Traube, Ludwig ...

(1895) and (1898). Due to the fact that Henoch, Traube and Spinola were Jewish, their busts were melted down in 1940. The busts have since been replaced with memorial trees. * 1893:

Fritz Reuter Fritz Reuter (7 November 1810 – 12 July 1874; born as ''Heinrich Ludwig Christian Friedrich Reuter'') was a novelist from Northern Germany who was a prominent contributor to Low German literature. Early life Fritz Reuter was born at Stavenha ...

Monument,

Neubrandenburg Neubrandenburg (lit. ''New Brandenburg'', ) is a city in the southeast of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is located on the shore of a lake called Tollensesee and forms the urban centre of the Mecklenburg Lakeland. The city is famous for its ...

, created with the assistance of

Wilhelm Wandschneider Wilhelm Georg Johannes Wandschneider (6 June 1866, Plau am See – 23 September 1942, Plau am See) was a German sculptor. Life His father was a commercial decorative painter. At an early age, he began an after-school apprenticeship in the fami ...

* 1899: "Denkmal 1870/71" (Monument for the Franco-Prussian War), "Viktoria mit sterbendem Krieger" ( Victoria with a Dying Warrior), bronze figure group. Neustrelitz, Bahnhofsplatz; destroyed in World War II * 1901: Siegesallee Group 21, consisting of

Johann Georg The German given name Johann Georg, or its variant spellings, may refer to: John George *John George, Elector of Brandenburg (1525–1598) *John George I, Elector of Saxony (1585–1656) *John George II, Elector of Saxony (1613–1680) *John Geor ...

, Elector of Brandenburg, as the central figure; flanked by Count Rochus zu Lynar, a military engineer who built the

Spandau Citadel The Spandau Citadel (german: Zitadelle Spandau) is a fortress in Berlin, Germany, one of the best-preserved Renaissance military structures of Europe. Built from 1559–94 atop a medieval fort on an island near the meeting of the Havel and ...

, and Lampert Distelmeyer, Chancellor of the

Margraviate of Brandenburg The Margraviate of Brandenburg (german: link=no, Markgrafschaft Brandenburg) was a major principality of the Holy Roman Empire from 1157 to 1806 that played a pivotal role in the history of Germany and Central Europe. Brandenburg developed out o ...

. * 1906

Friedrich Ludwig Jahn (11August 177815October 1852) was a German gymnastics educator and nationalist whose writing is credited with the founding of the German gymnastics (Turner) movement as well as influencing the German Campaign of 1813, during which a coalition of ...

, bust monument,

Weißwasser Weißwasser ( hsb, Běła Woda) is a town in Upper Lusatia in eastern Saxony, Germany. Weißwasser is the third largest town in the Görlitz district after Görlitz and Zittau. The town's landmark is its water tower. The town is part of the re ...

, Jahn-Park. * 1909 Frederick William, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, bronze statue, Neustrelitz, Paradeplatz; destroyed in 1944. * 1911 Joachim II Hector, Elector of Brandenburg, bronze statue,

Stadtschloss, Berlin The Berlin Palace (german: Berliner Schloss), formally the Royal Palace (german: Königliches Schloss), on the Museum Island in the Mitte area of Berlin, was the main residence of the House of Hohenzollern from 1443 to 1918. Expanded by order of ...

; missing and presumed destroyed. * 1912 Gaspard II de Coligny, bronze statue, Wilhelmshaven. Martin Wolff - Denkmal Adolf Bardeleben.jpg, Bust of Heinrich Adolf von Bardeleben Johann Georg (Brandenburg) Siegesallee Zitadelle.JPG, Johann Georg; now at the Spandau Citadel Reuter-Neubrandenburg-JMUnger.jpg, Fritz Reuter Monument, Neubrandenburg Friedrich Ludwig Jahn Bueste Weisswasser.jpg, Bust of
Friedrich Ludwig Jahn Humboldt Box, Berlin 2017 015.jpg, Moritz von Oranien, Berlin (1906)

External links

Charité website: Denkmäler Berühmter Wissentschaftler und Politiker in den Gartenanlangen...
(list of the bust monuments at the Charité Hospital, with biographies, histories and photographs of the surviving busts) {{DEFAULTSORT:Wolff, Martin 1852 births 1919 deaths Sculptors from Berlin Prussian Academy of Arts alumni Artists from the Kingdom of Prussia 20th-century German sculptors 20th-century German male artists 19th-century German sculptors German male sculptors

Life

Selected major works

Further reading

External links