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Christian Rohlfs
Germany, Dec 22, 1849 - Jan 08, 1938
Person TypeIndividual
Terms
BiographyDuring a two-year sickbed confinement from 1864-1866 Rohlfs was nursed by a doctor called Stolle, who discovered and supported the painting talent of the boy. At this time, the first drawings came into being. Upon Theodor Storm's suggestion and recommendation, Rohlfs went to Berlin and began his studies of painting at the Großherzogliche Kunstakademie in Weimar in 1870, where he was schooled in a naturalistic figure painting tradition. His works found approval by the Großherzog von Sachsen-Weimar [Grand Duke of Saxonia-Weimar], who supported him for many years. During the 1880s, color became an increasingly important element in his work. Working independently, he developed a freely colorful style similar to that of French Impressionism. The turning point of Rohlfs’s career came with his discovery of Post-Impressionism about 1900. The paintings of Vincent van Gogh in particular profoundly influenced him. Rohlfs' own tendency of expressive composition corresponded to the beginning Expressionism of the 'Brücke', to which early exhibitions at the Folkwang-museum attended. After his years of study at the academy, Rohlfs' work was formed for twenty years by Impressionism, but at the age of sixty, he found a late expressionistic style. Favoring tempera on canvas and paper, he also created watercolors and prints. In 1929 the Christian Rohlfs Museum in Hagen was founded for the artist's 80th birthday. After the Nazis seized power Rohlfs was expelled from the Preußische Kunstakademie der Künste in 1937 and 412 of his paintings were rated 'degenerate' and were removed from German museums. One year later, on 8 January 1938 Christian Rohlfs died in his studio in Hagen. He was remembered as one of the most important representatives of German Expressionism in art history.