Hermann Hendrich (31 October 1854 in

Heringen, Thuringia Heringen (also: Heringen/Helme in order to distinguish from Heringen in Hesse) is a town in the district of Nordhausen, in Thuringia, Germany. It is situated on the small river Helme, 8 km southeast of Nordhausen Nordhausen may refer to: * N ...

– 18 July 1931 in Schreiberhau in Niederschlesien) was a German painter.

Life

Hermann Hendrich was born in the vicinity of the storied

Kyffhäuser The Kyffhäuser (,''Duden - Das Aussprachewörterbuch, 7. Auflage (German)'', Dudenverlag, sometimes also referred to as ''Kyffhäusergebirge'', is a hill range in Central Germany, shared by Thuringia and Saxony-Anhalt, southeast of the Harz mou ...

, his parents were Auguste Friederike Hendrich née Ziegler and the baker August Hendrich. From 1870 to 1872 he served his apprenticeship as lithographer; one year shorter than the regular duration due to his evident talent. He then started a job in a

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 ...

ian lamp factory where he had to draw a catalogue. At that time, he first attended a

Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

ian opera,

Tannhäuser Tannhäuser (; gmh, Tanhûser), often stylized, "The Tannhäuser," was a German Minnesinger and traveling poet. Historically, his biography, including the dates he lived, is obscure beyond the poetry, which suggests he lived between 1245 and ...

, and the wish emerged to be able to draw such musical impressions. In 1875, Hendrich attended a job at a

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 ...

art institution where he had to lithograph oil paintings. in 1876, he visited

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

for further art studies. The jury of the "Grosse Berliner Kunstausstellung" (great Berlin art exhibition) disapproved however the exhibition of his paintings. Hendrich then started a job as painter in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

. In 1882, he married Clara (Kläre) Becker which he met there. On their honeymoon trip they visited Hendrich's brother in

Auburn, New York Auburn is a city in Cayuga County, New York, United States. Located at the north end of Owasco Lake, one of the Finger Lakes in Central New York, the city had a population of 26,866 at the 2020 census. It is the largest city of Cayuga County, the ...

. Here, he exhibited for the first time his paintings. After some initial sales, the remaining entire amount of pictures was bought by a single art dealer. Using the earned money Hendrich then made a study trip through the USA. To further deepen his education, in 1885 he went back to Germany. He started lessons by Professor Wenglein in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

, but then moved to Berlin, and made a study trip to Norway. In 1886, Hendrich entered a studio of the Berlin Academy of Art and received a stipend from the Prussion Ministry of Education and Arts. His paintings were firstly exhibited in Germany. In 1889, the German Emperor

Wilhelm II Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albert; 27 January 18594 June 1941) was the last German Emperor (german: Kaiser) and King of Prussia, reigning from 15 June 1888 until his abdication on 9 November 1918. Despite strengthening the German Empir ...

bought a picture from Hendrich, a highlight for his recognition. In 1901, the "Walpurgishalle" in

Thale Thale () is a town in the Harz district in Saxony-Anhalt in central Germany. Located at the steep northeastern rim of the Harz mountain range, it is known for the scenic Bode Gorge stretching above the town centre. Geography The town is situated ...

, a building in a pseudo old-Germanic style was inaugurated. Hendrich did the paintings in the interior and created sketches that were used by

Bernhard Sehring Ernst Bernhard Sehring (1 June 1855 in Edderitz, Anhalt – 27 December 1941) was a German architect. Life Sehring came from a petty-bourgeois village background and was the son of a Dessau construction foreman. He was boarded by Professor Ha ...

to create the architecture. Hendrich considered this as climax of his work. In Schreiberhau, 1903 Henrich erected the "Sagenhalle", inspired by the "Walpurgishalle". Hendrich was a co-founder of the Werdandibund in 1905, a society against the modern developments of art, considered as decadent. In 1910, the title

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...

was awarded to Hendrich. The "" at the Drachenfels was opened in 1913 on the occasion of

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

's centenary. It contains twelve paintings by Hendrich with scenes from . In 1921, he published illustrations for an edition of ''Das Märchen'' (also known as ''

The Green Snake and the Beautiful Lily The Green Snake and the Beautiful Lily (German title: ''Märchen'' or ''Das Märchen'') is a fairy tale by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe published in 1795 in Friedrich Schiller's German magazine '' Die Horen'' (The Horae). It concludes Goethe's novell ...

''), a 1795 story written by

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as trea ...

. In 1926, the "Halle Deutscher Sagenring" in Burg an der Wupper (today part of

Solingen Solingen (; li, Solich) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located some 25 km east of Düsseldorf along the northern edge of the region called Bergisches Land, south of the Ruhr area, and, with a 2009 population of 161,366, ...

) with Hendrich's paintings from the

Percival Percival (, also spelled Perceval, Parzival), alternatively called Peredur (), was one of King Arthur's legendary Knights of the Round Table. First mentioned by the French author Chrétien de Troyes in the tale ''Perceval, the Story of the G ...

saga was opened. Hendrich died 1931 in Schreiberhau in an accident at the age of 76.

Gallery

File:Walpurgishalle Windsbraut.jpg, ''Windsbraut'' (Bride of the Wind), 1901 File:Hermann Hendrich Die Meerfrau.jpg, ''Die Meerfrau'' (The Mermaid), 1908 File:Hermann Hendrich - Der Kampf um den Ruhm.jpg, ''Der Kampf um den Ruhm'', 1895 File:Will-o-the-wisp and snake by Hermann Hendrich 1823.jpg,

Will-o-the-wisp In folklore, a will-o'-the-wisp, will-o'-wisp or ''ignis fatuus'' (, plural ''ignes fatui''), is an atmospheric ghost light seen by travellers at night, especially over bogs, swamps or marshes. The phenomenon is known in English folk belief, ...

and snake File:Hermann Hendrich - Szene aus Wagners Ring.jpg, Scene from Wagner's ''

Ring Ring may refer to: * Ring (jewellery), a round band, usually made of metal, worn as ornamental jewelry * To make a sound with a bell, and the sound made by a bell :(hence) to initiate a telephone connection Arts, entertainment and media Film and ...

'', 1928 File:NIBHAL2.jpg, '' Freyja's Garden'', illustration for ''

Das Rheingold ''Das Rheingold'' (; ''The Rhinegold''), WWV 86A, is the first of the four music dramas that constitute Richard Wagner's ''Der Ring des Nibelungen'' (English: ''The Ring of the Nibelung''). It was performed, as a single opera, at the National ...

'' File:Hermann Hendrich Parsifal.jpg, ''

Parsifal ''Parsifal'' ( WWV 111) is an opera or a music drama in three acts by the German composer Richard Wagner and his last composition. Wagner's own libretto for the work is loosely based on the 13th-century Middle High German epic poem ''Parzival'' ...

'' File:Hermann Hendrich - Mondnacht am Meer.jpg, ''Mondnacht am Meer'' (Moon-night at sea),

Literature

*Elke Rohling (editor) ''Hermann Hendrich Leben und Werk Life and Work'': self-published "Werdandi" (bilingual German/English)

References

External links

Walpurgishalle paintings of Hermann Hendrich
(German)
Förderverein Hermann Hendrich (association of friends of Hermann Hendrich)
(German, English version available)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hendrich, Hermann 1854 births 1931 deaths People from Nordhausen (district) 19th-century German painters 19th-century German male artists German male painters 20th-century German painters 20th-century German male artists