Friedrich Ritter Bömches von Boor (27 December 1916 – 2 May 2010)
retrieved 23 July 2010 was a German painter, graphic artist and photographer.

Life

The son of an old-established

Transylvanian Saxon The Transylvanian Saxons (german: Siebenbürger Sachsen; Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjer Såksen''; ro, Sași ardeleni, sași transilvăneni/transilvani; hu, Erdélyi szászok) are a people of German ethnicity who settled in Transylvania ...

family, Friedrich von Bömches was born in Braşov at a time when

Transylvania Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the A ...

was still part of

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

. In 1938, he was drafted in the

Romanian Army The Romanian Land Forces ( ro, Forțele Terestre Române) is the army of Romania, and the main component of the Romanian Armed Forces. In recent years, full professionalisation and a major equipment overhaul have transformed the nature of the Lan ...

, and marched with it up to

Stalingrad Volgograd ( rus, Волгогра́д, a=ru-Volgograd.ogg, p=vəɫɡɐˈɡrat), formerly Tsaritsyn (russian: Цари́цын, Tsarítsyn, label=none; ) (1589–1925), and Stalingrad (russian: Сталингра́д, Stalingrád, label=none; ) ...

. Von Bömches was demobbed in 1945, but as a German he was deported to the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

by occupying forces shortly after, and was forced to work in

Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * So ...

quarries A quarry is a type of open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some jurisdictions to reduce their envir ...

until 1950. In 1974 von Bömches relocated to the

Federal Republic of Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated between ...

and four years later finally found - with the assistance of a local factory owner - a new home at

Wiehl Wiehl () is a municipality in the Oberbergischer Kreis, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located approximately 41 km east of Cologne. The neighbouring municipalities Reichshof, Waldbröl, Nümbrecht, Much, Germany, Much, Engelskirche ...

, a small town in

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more than 18 million inha ...

. Here, the artist lives together with his wife Erna (married since 1945) and still responds to his unbowed creative urge, though evidently limited by a severe heart surgery performed in 2001.

Work

Friedrich von Bömches has been highly successful in sublimating his bitter experiences with war and

captivity Captivity, or being held captive, is a state wherein humans or other animals are confined to a particular space and prevented from leaving or moving freely. An example in humans is imprisonment. Prisoners of war are usually held in captivity by a ...

. He took up this artistic transformation using the medium of photography: during the Stalingrad campaign von Bömches created a lot of photographs (most of which have additional documentary value). Not allowed to engage in this art throughout his captivity, von Bömches compensated by resorting to drawing. To date, von Bömches has produced again and again his famous ''Sekundenskizzen'' ("instant sketches") - he admitted to be suffering from a "hysterical pencil addiction". Nonetheless, a large portion of his post-release works deal with the tragedy of human existence, death (including his ''heralds'' that age and decay), hunger und persecution - to some extent in

biblical The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of ...

or mythological moods. In "trapping" the living through the contemplation of such seeming opposites as Life and Death, he provides equal motifs: masterly portraits thanks to an outstanding power of observation, as well as many "little" pictures, most of them extempore, with animal and other themes. The German connoisseur and patron of arts Peter Ludwig (1925–1996) referred to von Bömches as the "''probably greatest portraitist of the present''". Between 1950 and 1974, he created some fifteen thousand works. None of them were taken out of Romania. The number of his creations in Germany probably reaches a similar number, including his portraits of notable persons (more than five hundred in number).

Paintings and drawings (selection of the late work)

* ''Tell Me where the Flowers Are (Sag mir, wo die Blumen sind)'', acrylic, 1990 * ''The Ferryman (Der Fährmann)'', mid-1990s * ''The Embarrassing Guest (Der unangenehme Gast)'', mid-1990s * ''Terminus (Endstation)'', mid-1990s * ''There Is No Way Back (Es gibt kein Zurück)'', mid-1990s * ''The Endless Way (Der unendliche Weg)'', mid-1990s * ''Pietà'', mid-1990s * ''Crucifixion (Kreuzigung)'', mid-1990s * ''Funeral Cortege in Romania (Trauerzug in Rumänien)'', mid-1990s * ''People Left Behind (Die Zurückgelassenen)'', charcoal, 1994 * ''Nursing Home (Altenheim)'', 1995 * ''Behind Barbwire (Hinter Stacheldraht)'', mixed media, 1999 * ''Trip in the Dark (Fahrt ins Ungewisse) (Trilogy: Day / Night / The Door Opens)'', mixed media, 2001

Notabilities' portraits (selection)

Berthold Beitz Berthold Beitz (; 26 September 1913 – 30 July 2013) was a German industrialist. He was the head of the Krupp steel conglomerate beginning in the 1950s. He was credited with helping to lead the re-industrialization of the Ruhr Valley and r ...

, chairman of the supervisory board at

Krupp The Krupp family (see pronunciation), a prominent 400-year-old German dynasty from Essen, is notable for its production of steel, artillery, ammunition and other armaments. The family business, known as Friedrich Krupp AG (Friedrich Krupp ...

Hans-Dietrich Genscher Hans-Dietrich Genscher (21 March 1927 – 31 March 2016) was a German statesman and a member of the liberal Free Democratic Party (FDP), who served as Federal Minister of the Interior from 1969 to 1974, and as Federal Minister for Foreign Affa ...

Martin Heidegger Martin Heidegger (; ; 26 September 188926 May 1976) was a German philosopher who is best known for contributions to phenomenology, hermeneutics, and existentialism. He is among the most important and influential philosophers of the 20th centu ...

* Philipp Jenninger, speaker of the Federal Diet of Germany (1984–88) *

Lore Lorentz Lore Lorentz (12 September 1920 – 22 February 1994) was a German Kabarett artist and standup comedian. She was born in Mährisch-Ostrau, Czechoslovakia (today Ostrava in the Czech Republic) as Lore Schirmer. She studied history, German litera ...

(1920–1994), Grande Dame of German cabaret * Peter Ludwig (1925–1996), German connoisseur and patron of arts *

Hermann Oberth Hermann Julius Oberth (; 25 June 1894 – 28 December 1989) was an Austro-Hungarian-born German physicist and engineer. He is considered one of the founding fathers of rocketry and astronautics, along with Robert Esnault-Pelterie, Konstantin ...

Herbert Quandt Herbert Werner Quandt (22 June 1910 – 2 June 1982) was a German industrialist credited with having saved BMW when it was at the point of bankruptcy and made a huge profit in doing so. Quandt also oversaw the use at his family's factories ...

* Horst Waffenschmidt (1933–2002), German politician

Exhibitions in Germany (selection)

* 1966 / 1974:

Aachen Aachen ( ; ; Aachen dialect: ''Oche'' ; French and traditional English: Aix-la-Chapelle; or ''Aquisgranum''; nl, Aken ; Polish: Akwizgran) is, with around 249,000 inhabitants, the 13th-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia, and the 28th ...

Suermondt-Ludwig-Museum The Suermondt-Ludwig-Museum is an art museum in Aachen, Germany. Founded in 1877, its collection includes works by Aelbrecht Bouts, Joos van Cleve, Anthony van Dyck, Otto Dix and Max Beckmann. History The ' (Aachen museum association) was created ...

* 1985: Bonn -

Bad Godesberg Bad Godesberg ( ksh, Bad Jodesbersch) is a borough ('' Stadtbezirk'') of Bonn, southern North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. From 1949 to 1999, while Bonn was the capital of West Germany, most foreign embassies were in Bad Godesberg. Some buildings ...

(Muffendorf), ''Altes Kelterhaus'' * 1998: ''Burzenland - Artist's Land'',

Dinkelsbühl Dinkelsbühl () is a historic town in Central Franconia, a region of Germany that is now part of the state of Bavaria, in southern Germany. Dinkelsbühl is a former free imperial city of the Holy Roman Empire. In local government terms, Dinkelsb� ...

, parish house St. Paul * 2001: ''Hommage à Friedrich von Bömches'',

, lobby of savings bank * 2002: ''The Way to Stalingrad'' (photographies),

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 constitu ...

, Romanian Institute of Culture / ''Banishment'',

Nümbrecht Nümbrecht is a municipality in the Oberbergischer Kreis, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is a health resort, known for its good climate. Geography Nümbrecht is located about 40 km east of Cologne. Neighbouring places Division o ...

, Homburg castle * 2005: ''Pictures from the

Gulag The Gulag, an acronym for , , "chief administration of the camps". The original name given to the system of camps controlled by the State Political Directorate, GPU was the Main Administration of Corrective Labor Camps (, )., name=, group= ...

'',

Ulm Ulm () is a city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Danube on the border with Bavaria. The city, which has an estimated population of more than 126,000 (2018), forms an urban district of its own (german: link=no, ...

, Donauschwäbisches Zentralmuseum / ''Lost Years'', Stolberg-Vicht, Europäischer Kunsthof * 2007:

Gundelsheim, Baden-Württemberg Gundelsheim () is a town in the district of Heilbronn in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It is situated on the right bank of the Neckar, 17 km northwest of Heilbronn. The town centre retains its narrow mediaeval street plan, as we ...

, Transylvanian Museum at Horneck Castle * Durable exhibition at

Gummersbach Gummersbach (; ksh, Jummersbach) is a town in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, being the district seat of the Oberbergischer Kreis. It is located east of Cologne. History In 1109 Gummersbach was mentioned in official documents fo ...

, Kreishaus

Tributes

Friedrich von Bömches received several awards for his life's work: * In

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

(''Merit Cultural'') * In

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

* In

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

(1987: ''

Federal Cross of Merit The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (german: Verdienstorden der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, or , BVO) is the only federal decoration of Germany. It is awarded for special achievements in political, economic, cultural, intellect ...

'', 2002: ''Schwarzenberger Hochzeitstaler in Gold'' )

Literature

* Friedrich von Bömches: Malerei und Grafik, 1992, * Friedrich von Bömches: Leben und Schicksal, 1996, * Veröffentlichungen des Südostdeutschen Kulturwerks: Reihe A, Kultur und Dichtung; Bd. 52, 1997,

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bomches, Friedrich von 1916 births 2010 deaths People from Brașov Transylvanian Saxon people German people of German-Romanian descent German Expressionist painters 20th-century German painters 20th-century German male artists German male painters 21st-century German painters 21st-century German male artists Romanian painters Officers Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Romanian military personnel of World War II Romanian emigrants to Germany