Franz Xaver Friedrich Quant, known as Fritz (18 February 1888 in

Trier Trier ( , ; lb, Tréier ), formerly known in English as Trèves ( ;) and Triers (see also names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle in Germany. It lies in a valley between low vine-covered hills of red sandstone in the ...

– 3 November 1933 in Trier) was a German painter, graphic artist and designer.

Biography

His father was a master

cooper Cooper, Cooper's, Coopers and similar may refer to: * Cooper (profession), a maker of wooden casks and other staved vessels Arts and entertainment * Cooper (producers), alias of Dutch producers Klubbheads * Cooper (video game character), in ...

and innkeeper. He began his studies with an apprenticeship to the church painter, Peter Thomas (1854–1935). In 1908, he passed the journeyman's examination and found employment as a "painter's assistant" to at the Trier Arts and Crafts School. Four years later, he enlisted in the Army, but served only a short time before being discharged due to a chronic illness. Quant Trier

He then continued his education at the

Hochschule für Grafik und Buchkunst ' (, plural: ') is the generic term in German for institutions of higher education, corresponding to ''universities'' and ''colleges'' in English. The term ''Universität'' (plural: ''Universitäten'') is reserved for institutions with the right to ...

in Leipzig, where he studied etching with Alois Kolb. He was there from 1915 to 1918, when he returned to Trier and took over the painting class from Trümper, who had been drafted into the

Landsturm In German-speaking countries, the term ''Landsturm'' was historically used to refer to militia or military units composed of troops of inferior quality. It is particularly associated with Prussia, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Sweden and the Nethe ...

. By special permission of

Richard Riemerschmid Richard Riemerschmid (20 June 1868 – 13 April 1957) was a German architect, painter, designer and city planner from Munich. He was a major figure in ''Jugendstil'', the German form of Art Nouveau, and a founder of architecture in the s ...

, Director of the Arts and Crafts School in Munich, he was able to spend the years 1920–1922 studying with Robert Engels and

Adolf Schinnerer Adolf Schinnerer (15 September 1876 in Schwarzenbach an der Saale – 30 January 1949 in Ottershausen, part of Haimhausen in Oberbayern) was a German artist, active in painting, drawing and graphic design. He was also an instructor at the Academy ...

. It was then he developed a style that combined

Post-Impressionism Post-Impressionism (also spelled Postimpressionism) was a predominantly French art movement that developed roughly between 1886 and 1905, from the last Impressionist exhibition to the birth of Fauvism. Post-Impressionism emerged as a reaction a ...

with Expressionism. In 1925, he got married and settled in Trier, where he worked as a free-lance artist until 1930, when he returned to the Arts and Crafts School as a teacher. During those years he was, however, well-connected; belonging to numerous local and regional professional associations and art societies. His "View of Trier from the West" was presented as a gift to Chancellor

Gustav Stresemann Gustav Ernst Stresemann (; 10 May 1878 – 3 October 1929) was a German statesman who served as chancellor in 1923 (for 102 days) and as foreign minister from 1923 to 1929, during the Weimar Republic. His most notable achievement was the reconci ...

. In addition to his paintings, he illustrated travel brochures, provided drawings to newspapers, created advertisements (mostly for wine and tobacco) and produced designs for the local

Notgeld ''Notgeld'' (German for "emergency money" or "necessity money") refers to money issued by an institution in a time of economic or political crisis. The issuing institution is usually one without official sanction from the central government. This ...

during the period of

hyperinflation In economics, hyperinflation is a very high and typically accelerating inflation. It quickly erodes the real value of the local currency, as the prices of all goods increase. This causes people to minimize their holdings in that currency as t ...

. In his last years, as his health declined, he devoted himself mostly to interior design; notably the Town Hall in

Wittlich The town of Wittlich (; Moselle Franconian: ''Wittlech'') is the seat of the Bernkastel-Wittlich district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Its historic town centre and the beauty of the surrounding countryside make the town a centre for tourism i ...

. Shortly after the

Nazi takeover Adolf Hitler's rise to power began in the newly established Weimar Republic in September 1919 when Hitler joined the '' Deutsche Arbeiterpartei'' (DAP; German Workers' Party). He rose to a place of prominence in the early years of the party. Be ...

(just before his death) he was admitted to the Trier branch of the "Reich Cartel of Fine Arts" and given a license to exhibit. In 1959, his widow wrote a will leaving his works to the City of Trier. After her death in 1976, over 400 works were transferred to the . A street in Trier has been named after him.

Selected works

Fritz quant moselkran.jpg, Crane on the Moselle (etching) Quant Muenchener.Fasching.jpg,

Fasching A variety of customs and traditions are associated with Carnival celebrations in the German-speaking countries of Germany, Switzerland and Austria. They can vary considerably from country to country, but also from one small region to another. Th ...

in Munich Notgeld fritz quant 10 millionen mark.jpg, Ten Million Mark Notgeld Quant Bernkastel.jpg, Bernkastel Mattheis Fritz Quant.jpg, St. Matthias' Abbey (crayon and pencil drawing)

Sources

* Elisabeth Dühr (ed.), Christine Beier and Heinrich Nebgen: ''Fritz Quant (1888–1933) – Ein Trierer Maler und Grafiker'' (exhibition catalog), Stadtmuseum Simeonstift, 1994, . * Matthias Mehs: "Fritz Quant als Maler seiner Heimat". In: ''Trierische Heimat'', Vol.10 (1933/34), pp.73–75. * Reinhard Heß: "Fritz Quant, der Maler". In: ''Neues Trierisches Jahrbuch 1967'', pp. 53–56. * Dieter Ahrens: "Das Werk Fritz Quants im Städtischen Museum Simeonstift". In: ''Neues Trierisches Jahrbuch 1981'', pp. 53–54.

External links

Fritz Quant Exhibition
@ Kulturamt Wittlich {{DEFAULTSORT:Quant, Fritz 1888 births 1933 deaths 20th-century German painters 20th-century German male artists German landscape painters German etchers German designers German illustrators People from Trier Hochschule für Grafik und Buchkunst Leipzig alumni