DOI Heft:
No. 73 (April 1899)
DOI Artikel:Singer, Hans Wolfgang: Modern german lithography, [2]: Some Karlsruhe artists
DOI Seite / Zitierlink:https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.19231#0183
Modern German Lithography
of the much-desired goal—art everywhere and in The aim of the trade or " professional " lithogra-
everything. pher in colours is to make his work look as if it
One difficulty, however, presents itself, and that " had happened " ; the aim of the artist is to make
is the expensiveness of lithographic production it look as if it " were made." The one goes to a
here. Lithographic artists will, even in designs huge amount of trouble in order to conceal his
for every-day use, not willingly give up uncommon means and method of work and to produce a
and refined effects ; they will be dependent upon the vulgar naturalistic copy, with all the half-tones and
use of good, especially well-toned paper, and upon gradations of the original, without any trace of a
a clever printer. In this country, where labour is man's will in it. The other delights to work in an
so cheap, paper and lithographic printing are, apparent, bold manner, showing us without restraint
strange to say, far dearer than in France, dearer how many stones he uses, and how he disposes
than in London even, and this may turn out to be them ; he does not copy Nature, but simplifies her
a serious hindrance to the popularising of the art. by eliminating subtle half-tones—in fact, he gene-
It remains to be seen whether the Kiinstlerbund rally changes the colour aspect of Nature and sets
will be able to circumvent the difficulty. up his own scheme of colour.
From the very start all the members seem to It is in this direction that the greatest successes
have had one common object in view—the eleva- of the Karlsruhe Kiinstlerbund have been scored,
tion of chromo-lithography to a fine art. We might They have severally discovered many new ways of
adapt Huckleberry Finn's phraseology and say : treating the stone, and have achieved a number of
delightful colour effects.
The fact that no one of
them has influenced the
other, and that no one has
as -yet entered a particular
groove, proves that they
have, comparatively speak-
ing, been at lithography
only a short time. But
within this space of time
they have created some-
thing worth expanding,
and bearing a typically
German character — they
have created a " National "
art, as one would term it
here. This is a great deal
in their favour, for the
same danger that ensnared
four out of every five artists
in Paris among those who
have recently tried colour-
printing—the danger of
imitating Japanese work—?
lurked in Karlsruhe, too, as
did also the danger of imita-
ting the Parisian imitations.
Karlsruhe has fallen into
neither fault, but has battled
with the problem straight-
forwardly and sincerely,
and has succeeded well.
Let us consider a few
,1 of the artists and, their
; THE POND " FROM A LITHOGRAPH BY H. MATTHIES-MASUREN lithographs Separately.
168
of the much-desired goal—art everywhere and in The aim of the trade or " professional " lithogra-
everything. pher in colours is to make his work look as if it
One difficulty, however, presents itself, and that " had happened " ; the aim of the artist is to make
is the expensiveness of lithographic production it look as if it " were made." The one goes to a
here. Lithographic artists will, even in designs huge amount of trouble in order to conceal his
for every-day use, not willingly give up uncommon means and method of work and to produce a
and refined effects ; they will be dependent upon the vulgar naturalistic copy, with all the half-tones and
use of good, especially well-toned paper, and upon gradations of the original, without any trace of a
a clever printer. In this country, where labour is man's will in it. The other delights to work in an
so cheap, paper and lithographic printing are, apparent, bold manner, showing us without restraint
strange to say, far dearer than in France, dearer how many stones he uses, and how he disposes
than in London even, and this may turn out to be them ; he does not copy Nature, but simplifies her
a serious hindrance to the popularising of the art. by eliminating subtle half-tones—in fact, he gene-
It remains to be seen whether the Kiinstlerbund rally changes the colour aspect of Nature and sets
will be able to circumvent the difficulty. up his own scheme of colour.
From the very start all the members seem to It is in this direction that the greatest successes
have had one common object in view—the eleva- of the Karlsruhe Kiinstlerbund have been scored,
tion of chromo-lithography to a fine art. We might They have severally discovered many new ways of
adapt Huckleberry Finn's phraseology and say : treating the stone, and have achieved a number of
delightful colour effects.
The fact that no one of
them has influenced the
other, and that no one has
as -yet entered a particular
groove, proves that they
have, comparatively speak-
ing, been at lithography
only a short time. But
within this space of time
they have created some-
thing worth expanding,
and bearing a typically
German character — they
have created a " National "
art, as one would term it
here. This is a great deal
in their favour, for the
same danger that ensnared
four out of every five artists
in Paris among those who
have recently tried colour-
printing—the danger of
imitating Japanese work—?
lurked in Karlsruhe, too, as
did also the danger of imita-
ting the Parisian imitations.
Karlsruhe has fallen into
neither fault, but has battled
with the problem straight-
forwardly and sincerely,
and has succeeded well.
Let us consider a few
,1 of the artists and, their
; THE POND " FROM A LITHOGRAPH BY H. MATTHIES-MASUREN lithographs Separately.
168