Erwin Aichele (5 May 1887 – 29 June 1974) was a German painter and animal artist from

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...

Southern Germany Southern Germany (, ) is a region of Germany that includes the areas in which Upper German dialects are spoken, which includes the stem duchies of Bavaria and Swabia in present-day Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg, and the southern portion of Hesse ...

. His life and work was the subject of a 1988 monograph, ''Der Tiermaler Erwin Aichele'' by Hans Schöner.

Early years

Erwin Aichele studied fine art at the State Academy of Fine Arts Karlsruhe. He continued his studies in the

Academy of Fine Arts, Munich The Academy of Fine Arts, Munich (, also known as Munich Academy) is one of the oldest and most significant art academies in Germany. It is located in the Maxvorstadt district of Munich, in Bavaria, Germany. In the second half of the 19th centur ...

, where he was taught by the celebrated animal artist Heinrich von Zügel. In 1911, Aichele passed his art teaching diploma and started work at the jewelry school in

Pforzheim Pforzheim () is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city of over 125,000 inhabitants in the federal state of Baden-Württemberg, in the southwest of Germany. It is known for its jewelry and watch-making industry, and as such has gained the ...

, Southern Germany.

War years

In 1915, Aichele joined the army and was sent to France as part of a communications team. His talent in draughtsmanship came to the notice of his commanding officer and he was given the official function of war artist. Most of his surviving war drawings were executed in 1916 when, as part of the Third Battery FAR 185, he was stationed in Liry in

Champagne Champagne (; ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, which demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, spe ...

. In June 1916, the troops moved to northern France. Aichele's drawings depict places such as Achery, Doingt,

Laon Laon () is a city in the Aisne Departments of France, department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. History Early history The Ancient Diocese of Laon, which rises a hundred metres above the otherwise flat Picardy plain, has always held s ...

, Vraignes,

Soissons Soissons () is a commune in the northern French department of Aisne, in the region of Hauts-de-France. Located on the river Aisne, about northeast of Paris, it is one of the most ancient towns of France, and is probably the ancient capital ...

. On each drawing he made a precise note of place, time and subject. His preferred media included pencil, ink, charcoal and coloured pastels. Although he witnessed the horrors of war, little of this appears in his drawings. They are dispassionate and betray no feelings of hate, horror or despair. Aichele's last drawing in France is dated May 1918, shortly before a wound and nervous breakdown caused him to collapse into a coma. He was transferred to a military hospital in Polzen,

Pomerania Pomerania ( ; ; ; ) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The central and eastern part belongs to the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, West Pomeranian, Pomeranian Voivod ...

, and started drawing again during his convalescence. He returned home on the signature of the armistice.

Career

Aichele resumed his teaching activities at Pforzheim's jewelry school. He also began painting again, focusing on wildlife and the semi-domesticated animals he reared. He worked in various media, including watercolours, oils, charcoal and pen and ink. In 1934, Aichele was put in charge of the animal drawing class at the State Academy of Fine Arts Karlsruhe. He was professor of the academy between 1936 and 1944. In 1940, Aichele left the Pforzheim jewelry school in order to teach at the town's School of Decorative Arts. His work was interrupted in the last years of the war when he was drafted into the Volksturm or Home Guard. He avoided joining the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party ( or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported the ideology of Nazism. Its precursor ...

for the duration of the

Third Reich Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a totalitarian dictat ...

. He continued to teach at the Institute of Decorative Art until 1952; he was director of the institute for some of this time. In the 1950s, he increasingly turned towards abstraction, though still using animals as his models. In 1931, Erwin, his wife, Marie Charlotte, and three children moved into their new home in the ''kuenstlerkolonie'' (artists colony) in the village of Eutingen, near Pforzheim. The house had an adjoining atelier and animal enclosures.

Exhibitions

In 1921, he participated for the first time in an exhibition at the

Glaspalast (Munich) The ''Glaspalast'' (Glass Palace) was a glass and iron exhibition building located in the Alter Botanischer Garten (Munich), Old botanical garden in Munich modeled after the Crystal Palace in London. The Glaspalast opened for the first General G ...

, (the Glass Palace in Munich). Afterwards, he took part in other group shows. His work was also displayed in solo exhibitions, especially in southern Germany. In 1955, his work was exhibited in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

for the first time.

Honours

In 1974, Aichele was made honorary citizen of Eutingen. The principal road in the ''kuenstlerkolonie'' was renamed Erwin-Aichele-Strasse. In 1988, the Society of Fine Art in Pforzheim honoured him with a retrospective: to mark the occasion, the publishing house, Hans Schöner, published a monograph with reproductions of his works. In 2009, an exhibition in southern Germany brought together the works of Aichele, his son,

Wolfram Aichele Wolfram Aïchele (29 April 1924 – 9 June 2016) was an artist from Baden-Württemberg in Southern Germany. Son of the animal artist Erwin Aichele, Aïchele's Third Reich childhood is the subject of a 2011 book by the author and historian Gi ...

and six of his artist grandchildren, Mathias Diebold, Nikolaus Diebold, Fridolin Diebold, Irmgard Jeserick, Benedikt Aichele and Alexandra Milton. A book by British author, Giles Milton, ''Wolfram: The Boy Who Went To War'',''Wolfram: The Boy Who Went to War'' by Giles Milton, published by Sceptre in February 2011 is an account of the Eutingen childhood and adolescent war years of his second son, artist

. It includes material about Aichele's life before and during the

References

External links

The official website of Erwin Aichele
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aichele, Erwin 20th-century German painters 20th-century German male artists German male painters 1887 births 1974 deaths Academy of Fine Arts, Munich alumni Academy of Fine Arts, Karlsruhe alumni