Karl Hofer

Memorial plaque at Grunewaldstraße 44 in Berlin-Schöneberg

Karl Christian Ludwig Hofer or Carl Hofer (11 October 1878 in Karlsruhe – 3 April 1955 Berlin) was a German expressionist painter. One of the most prominent painters of expressionism, he never was a member of one of the expressionist painting groups, like "Die Brücke", who influenced him. His work was considered degenerate art by the Nazis, and only after World War II did he regain recognition as one of the greatest German painters.

Works

Early work, 1898–1920

• 1901: Betende Kinder (Praying Children), Oil on Canvas, Private Collection, Karlsruhe, Germany
• 1903: Karl und Thilde Hofer (Karl and Thilde Hofer), Oil on Canvas, Former Hofer Estate, Berlin, Germany
• 1907: Drei Badende Jünglinge (Three Young Bathers), Oil on Canvas, The Winterthur Museum of Art, Winterthur, Switzerland
• 1911: Im Sturm (By Storm), Oil on Canvas, The Winterthur Museum of Art, Winterthur, Switzerland
• 1913: Selbstbildnis (Self Portrait), Oil on Canvas, Bavarian State Picture Collection, Munich, Germany
• 1913: Fahnenträger (Flagbearer), Oil on Canvas, Municipal Art Gallery, Mannheim, Germany
• 1914: Im Meersand (In the Sand), Oil on Canvas, State Art Gallery, Karlsruhe, Germany
• 1918: Bildnis Theodor Reinhart (Portrait of Theodor Reinhart), Oil on Canvas, Volkhart Brothers, Winterthur, Switzerland

Middle period, 1920–1933

• 1922: Maskerade oder Drei Masken (Masquerade or Three Masks), Oil on Canvas, Wallraf-Richartz Museum, Cologne, Germany
• 1922/1923: Freundinnen (Girlfriends), Oil on Canvas, Kunsthalle Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
• 1924: Große Tischgesellschaft (Large Dinner Party), Oil on Canvas, The Winterthur Museum of Art, Winterthur, Switzerland
• 1924: Der Rufer (The Caller), Oil on Canvas, New Masters Gallery, Dresden, Germany
• 1925: Still life National Museum of Serbia, Belgrade, Serbia
• 1926: Zwei Freunde (Two Friends), Oil on Canvas, Städel, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
• 1928: Großer Karneval (Big Carnival), Oil on Canvas, Bavarian State Picture Collection, Munich, Germany
• 1928: Yellow Dog Blues, Oil on Canvas, Private Collection
• 1930: Selbstbildnis mit Dämonen (Self Portrait with Demons), Oil on Canvas, Former Hofer Estate, Berlin, Germany

Mature work, 1933–1945

• 1933: Gefangene (Prisoner), Oil on Canvas, Berlinische Galerie, Berlin, Germany
• 1935: Frühe Stunde (Early Hour), Oil on Canvas, Portland Art Museum, Portland, USA
• 1935: Turmbläser (Trumpeters), Oil on Canvas, Former Hofer Estate, Berlin, Germany
• 1936: Agnuzzo – Italienische Landschaft (Agnuzzo – Italian Landscape), Oil on Canvas, The Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, USA
• 1937: Mann in Ruinen (Man in Ruins), Oil on Canvas, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Kassel, Kassel, Germany
• 1943: Die Schwarzen Zimmer (2. Fassung) (The Black Rooms, 2nd version), Oil on Canvas, Neue Nationalgalerie, Berlin, Germany
• 1944: Der Brief (The Letter), Oil on Canvas, Private Collection
• 1944: Schwarzmondnacht (Black Moon), Oil on Canvas, Former Hofer Estate, Cologne, Germany

Late work, 1945–1955

• 1947: Höllenfahrt (Descent into Hell), Oil on Canvas, Former Hofer Estate, Cologne, Germany
• 1947: Ruinennacht (Night of Ruin), Oil on Canvas, Former Hofer Estate, Cologne, Germany
• 1948: Schwarzmond (2. Fassung)(Black Moon, 2nd version, Oil on Canvas, Former Hofer Estate, Cologne, Germany
• 1950: Im Gestein (In Rock), Oil on Canvas, Private Collection, Southern Germany
• 1951: Zwei Frauen (Doppelportrait), (Two Women) (Double Portrait), Oil on Cardboard, Private Collection, Cologne, Germany
• 1954: Zwei Masken (Two Masks), Oil on Canvas, Former Hofer Estate
• 1954: Drei Mädchen zwischen Leitern (Three Girls between Conductors), Oil on Canvas, Private Collection, Cologne, Germany
• 1954: Vater und Tochter (Father and Daughter), Oil on Canvas, Private Collection, Cologne, Germany

Literature

• Karl Hofer: Über das Gesetzliche in der bildenden Kunst. Hrsg. Kurt Martin. Berlin 1956.
• Karl Hofer: Erinnerungen eines Malers. München 1963.
• Christine Fischer-Defoy (Hrsg. Karl-Hofer-Gesellschaft): Ich habe das Meine gesagt! – Reden und Stellungnahmen von Karl Hofer zu Kunst, Kultur und Politik in Deutschland 1945–1955. Berlin 1995.
• Daniel Kupper (Hrsg.): Karl Hofer – Schriften. Berlin 1995.
• Ernst Rathenau: Karl Hofer – Das graphische Werk. Berlin 1969.
• Katherine Rigby: Karl Hofer. New York/London 1976.
• Elisabeth Furler (Hg.): Karl Hofer – Leben und Werk in Daten und Bildern. Frankfurt am Main 1978.
• Elisabeth Hofer-Richold, Ursula Feist und Günther Feist: Karl Hofer. Berlin 1983.
• Renate Hartleb: Karl Hofer. Leipzig 1987.
• Ursula Feist und Günther Feist (Hrsg.): Karl Hofer – Theodor Reinhart. Maler und Mäzen. Ein Briefwechsel in Auswahl. Berlin 1989.
• Jürgen Schilling: Karl Hofer. Unna 1991.
• Karl Bernhard Wohlert: Werkverzeichnis Karl Hofer. Karl-Hofer-Dokumentation. 3 Bände. VAN HAM Art Publications.
• Hans Gerhard Evers (Hrsg.): Darmstädter Gespräch – Das Menschenbild in unserer Zeit. Darmstadt 1951.
• Ausstellungskatalog: In Memoriam Will Grohmann – Wegbereiter der Moderne. Stuttgart 1987/1988.
• Ausstellungskatalog: Abstraktion und Figuration. Galerie Pels-Leusden. Berlin 1989.

External links

• Biography and available work Galerie Ludorff, Düsseldorf, Germany
• Karl Hofer in the German National Library catalogue
• Leben und Werk
• Karl Hofer als Buchillustrator
• Grafiken
• Neun Bilder
• Spätwerke (nach 1942)