Hans-Jürgen Schlieker (April 8, 1924 – March 12, 2004) was a German abstract painter, grouped in importance with

Hans Hartung Hans Hartung (21 September 1904 – 7 December 1989) was a German-French painter, known for his gestural abstract style. He was also a decorated World War II veteran of the Legion d'honneur. Life Hartung was born in Leipzig, Germany, into an ...

, Bernard Schultze and Emil Schumacher.

Biography

Schlieker was born in 1924 in Schöningen (today Grędziec,

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

), East Pomerania, where he grew up and completed a formal education before deciding to study applied arts at a local studio. After a period of focused study, he served as a soldier for three years in the German army, an experience which he later expressed pictorially in flamboyant 50s colours and through artistic work groups. (These have returned to new importance thanks to the lectures of the poet,

Baudelaire Charles Pierre Baudelaire (, ; ; 9 April 1821 – 31 August 1867) was a French poet, essayist, translator and art critic. His poems are described as exhibiting mastery of rhythm and rhyme, containing an exoticism inherited from the Romantics, an ...

es fleurs du mal) After the war and a temporary stay at an artist's centre in

Mecklenburg Mecklenburg (; ) is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The largest cities of the region are Rostock, Schwerin, Neubrandenburg, Wismar and Güstrow. ...

, Schlieker moved to

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

to study at the ''Kunsthochschule'' (arts college) under

Erich Hartmann Erich Alfred Hartmann (19 April 1922 – 20 September 1993) was a German fighter pilot during World War II and the most successful fighter ace in the history of aerial warfare. He flew 1,404 combat missions and participated in aerial comb ...

. Upon completing his studies in 1951, he married Gisela Chrambach and moved to Bochum in the

Ruhr The Ruhr ( ; , also ''Ruhrpott'' ), also referred to as the Ruhr Area, sometimes Ruhr District, Ruhr Region, or Ruhr Valley, is a polycentric urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population density of 1,160/km2 and a populati ...

Valley, where he began life as a freelance artist. His only daughter, Claudia, was born in 1952. In 1954, he travelled the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...

on the German Orient Line and visited

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

and

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

. The trip left a deep impression and instilled a wanderlust. After completing a major in 1957-1958, he and his family moved to San Pol, Spain, a pristine bay on the Mediterranean. Schlieker won two art prizes, the Westphalian Art Association's '‘Jungwestfalen award’' in 1958, and ''Maler sehen Stuttgart'' (Painters see Stuttgart) in 1959. For the next few years, Schlieker taught at a gymnasium in Bochum before moving to

Ruhr University The Ruhr University Bochum (, ) is a public research university located in the southern hills of the central Ruhr area, Bochum, Germany. It was founded in 1962 as the first new public university in Germany after World War II. Instruction began i ...

in 1968 to build up its fine arts department. Managing the entire programme, he soon became mentor to countless students seeking guidance and inspiration in the arts. In 1989, he retired from teaching and was awarded the ''Verdienstorden des Landes Nordrhein-Westfalen'' (

Order of Merit of North Rhine-Westphalia The Order of Merit of North Rhine-Westphalia () is a civil Order (honour), order of merit, of the Germany, German States of Germany, State of North Rhine-Westphalia. The Order of Merit of North Rhine-Westphalia was founded on 11 March 1986. It is ...

) for his work. Other winners that year were K. O. Götz, Adolf Luther, Bernard Schultze, Hann Trier and

Günther Uecker Günther Uecker (; 13 March 1930 – 10 June 2025) was a German painter, sculptor, op artist, and installation artist. He became known primarily for his nail reliefs. In 1961, Uecker joined the Zero (art), ZERO group. Early life and education ...

. Schlieker entered the classroom three more times to hold seminars on etching at the

Academy of Fine Arts Vienna The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna () is a public art school in Vienna, Austria. Founded in 1688 as a private academy, it is now a public university. The academy is also known for twice rejecting admission to a young Adolf Hitler in 1907 and 1908. ...

in 1994, 1996 and 1997. He died on March 12, 2004 in Bochum.

Examples of work

Image:Schlieker-werk-fruehjahr-1991.jpg, Spring 91, oil on canvas, 160x220cm Image:Schlieker-werk-Bild-Blau-1990.jpg, Blue Image 1990, oil on canvas, 190x400cm Image:Schlieker-werk-Januar-1983.jpg, January 83/2, oil on canvas, 170x400cm Image:Schlieker-werk-Mai-2000.jpg, May 13, 2000, oil on canvas, 100x300cm A comprehensive collection of works by the artist is shown on his official website

Schlieker Haus

The ''Schlieker Haus'', opened in 2005 in the Querenburg suburb of Bochum, serves the purpose of documenting the life and work of the artist. In addition to a comprehensive collection of Schlieker paintings, the ''Schlieker Haus'' regularly organizes exhibitions of 20th and 21st century art.Schlieker Haus
Pictures of many of Schlieker's paintings; biography, bibliography, exhibition and collection directory. Retrieved April 27, 2010

References

External links

Art Gallery Schlag & Cie
Retrieved April 27, 2010
Schlieker Channel on Vimeo
Documentary movies produced by Christoph Böll. Retrieved April 27, 2010
Schlieker Haus
Official website. Retrieved April 27, 2010 {{DEFAULTSORT:Schlieker, Hans-Jurgen 1924 births 2004 deaths Art Informel and Tachisme painters 20th-century German etchers 21st-century German engravers 21st-century etchers German etchers 20th-century German painters 20th-century German male artists German male painters 21st-century German painters 21st-century German male artists German modern painters Members of the Order of Merit of North Rhine-Westphalia 20th-century German printmakers German Army personnel of World War II