Heinz Trökes (15 August 1913 – 22 April 1997) was a German

painter Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ...

printmaker Printmaking is the process of creating artworks by printing, normally on paper, but also on fabric, wood, metal, and other surfaces. "Traditional printmaking" normally covers only the process of creating prints using a hand processed techniqu ...

and art teacher.

Biography

Trökes was born in

Duisburg Duisburg () is a city in the Ruhr metropolitan area of the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Lying on the confluence of the Rhine and the Ruhr rivers in the center of the Rhine-Ruhr Region, Duisburg is the 5th largest city in No ...

. After completing his ''Abitur'' (school leaving examination) in 1933, Trökes was a pupil of Johannes Itten in

Krefeld Krefeld ( , ; li, Krieëvel ), also spelled Crefeld until 1925 (though the spelling was still being used in British papers throughout the Second World War), is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located northwest of Düsseldorf, i ...

from 1933 to 1936. From 1936 to 1939, he lived as a painter in

Augsburg Augsburg (; bar , Augschburg , links=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swabian_German , label=Swabian German, , ) is a city in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany, around west of Bavarian capital Munich. It is a university town and regional seat of the '' ...

and earned his living designing textiles with the '' J. P. Bemberg'' company. In 1938, his first solo exhibition in the Galerie Nierendorf in Berlin was closed at the initiative of the

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hit ...

. He was then expelled from the

Reich Chamber of Culture The Reich Chamber of Culture (''Reichskulturkammer'') was a government agency in Nazi Germany. It was established by law on 22 September 1933 in the course of the '' Gleichschaltung'' process at the instigation of Reich Minister Joseph Goebbels as ...

and had no more opportunities to exhibit until 1945. In 1937 he met

Wassily Kandinsky Wassily Wassilyevich Kandinsky (; rus, Василий Васильевич Кандинский, Vasiliy Vasilyevich Kandinskiy, vɐˈsʲilʲɪj vɐˈsʲilʲjɪvʲɪtɕ kɐnʲˈdʲinskʲɪj; – 13 December 1944) was a Russian painter a ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

; the following year, he travelled to

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label= Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavij ...

and once again to

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. In 1939, Trökes moved to Zurich in order to emigrate from there to the Dutch East Indies (Indonesia). The outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

prevented this, however. Returning to Germany in 1940, he studied with Georg Muche in Krefeld, but was and conscripted to the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previou ...

, until 1942 as a flak soldier in Berlin. He attended the art school of

Max Dungert Max Wilhelm Waldemar Dungert (3 September 1896, Magdeburg - April/May 1945, Berlin) was a German painter and graphic artist. Life and work He was born to Ferdinand Dungert, a police courier, and his wife Betty Elise née Koehler.Ancestry.com. ...

in his free time. He was friends with, among others,

Oskar Huth Oskar Huth (26 February 1918 – 21 August 1991) was many things: organ builder, graphic artist, a pianist with a rare gift for improvising in the style of the classical composers, a word smith and compelling teller of tales, a drinker and a noted ...

, who provided him with a fake official exemption from the Wehrmacht. In 1945, Trökes was a co-founder of the Berlin Galerie Gerd Rosen, the first private art gallery in Germany after the war, and remained artistic director until 1946. From 1946 to 1948, a series of cosmonaut-like images was created, including ''Die Mondkanone'' (The Moon Cannon), ''Terrain der Kosmologen'' (Terrain of the Cosmologists), ''Sphärische Kontraste'' (Spheric Contrasts) and ''Zwei Welten'' (Two Worlds). He was called to the ''Staatliche Hochschule für Architektur und Kunst in Weimar'' (College of Architecture and Art) (today Bauhaus Universität) together with the painter in 1947, but finished teaching after one semester due to excessive external influence. He participated in the exhibition ''L’Art Allemand Moderne'', ''Deutsche Kunst der Gegenwart'' (German art of the present) in

Baden-Baden Baden-Baden () is a spa town in the state of Baden-Württemberg, south-western Germany, at the north-western border of the Black Forest mountain range on the small river Oos, ten kilometres (six miles) east of the Rhine, the border with France, ...

. During the

blockade A blockade is the act of actively preventing a country or region from receiving or sending out food, supplies, weapons, or communications, and sometimes people, by military force. A blockade differs from an embargo or sanction, which ar ...

from 1948 to 1949, he stayed in Berlin, in Rodenbach near Neuwied on the Rhine, then again in Berlin. In 1949 he married Renata Severin. Trökes published an article in the magazine '' Les Temps modernes'', Paris (Dir.

Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was one of the key figures in the philosophy of existentialist, existentialism (and Phenomenology (philosophy), phenomenology), a French playwright, novelist, screenwriter ...

) on ''La peinture et le public en Allemagne. L’inflation d’expositions et le scandale qu’elles provoquent''. From 1950 to 1952 he won the ''Blevin-Davis competition'' in Munich, stayed in Paris and befriended with Wols and Paul Celan. Trökes joined the ''Rixes group'' with Roberto Matta, Jaroslaw Serpan, Jean-Paul Riopelle and Zañartu, among others. Participation in the weekly Jour fixe revolving around

André Breton André Robert Breton (; 19 February 1896 – 28 September 1966) was a French writer and poet, the co-founder, leader, and principal theorist of surrealism. His writings include the first ''Surrealist Manifesto'' (''Manifeste du surréalisme'') o ...

(

Benjamin Péret Benjamin Péret (4 July 1899 – 18 September 1959) was a French poet, Parisian Dadaist and a founder and central member of the French Surrealist movement with his avid use of Surrealist automatism. Biography Benjamin Péret was born in Rez� ...

Marcel Duchamp Henri-Robert-Marcel Duchamp (, , ; 28 July 1887 – 2 October 1968) was a French painter, sculptor, chess player, and writer whose work is associated with Cubism, Dada, and conceptual art. Duchamp is commonly regarded, along with Pablo Picasso ...

, Toyen,

Max Ernst Max Ernst (2 April 1891 – 1 April 1976) was a German (naturalised American in 1948 and French in 1958) painter, sculptor, printmaker, graphic artist, and poet. A prolific artist, Ernst was a primary pioneer of the Dada movement and Surrealism ...

, Rufino Tamayo and Gérard Hérold). Heinz and Renée Trökes moved to Ibiza in 1952. Here, he created many island pictures, often of a topographical character. He won the Hallmark competition,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. In 1954 his son, Jan Manuel, was born. Also in 1955, he received the

Deutscher Kritikerpreis Deutscher Kritikerpreis was a cultural prize awarded annually by the Association of German Critics (Verband der Deutschen Kritiker e.V.) from 1951 to 2009. This award was given for outstanding contributions in the fields of architecture, the fi ...

and teaching offers from art schools and academies in Berlin,

Karlsruhe Karlsruhe ( , , ; South Franconian German, South Franconian: ''Kallsruh'') is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, third-largest city of the German States of Germany, state (''Land'') of Baden-Württemberg after its capital o ...

, Zurich, Stuttgart and

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its ...

, which he, however, declined. In 1955, he participated in documenta 1 in Kassel. (He also participated in further documentas in 1956 (

II. documenta II. documenta was the second edition of documenta, a quinquennial contemporary art exhibition. It was held between 11 July and 1 October 1959 in Kassel, West Germany. The artistic director was Arnold Bode in collaboration with art historian Wern ...

) and 1964 (

documenta III documenta III was the third edition of documenta, a quinquennial contemporary art exhibition. It was held between 27 June and 5 October 1964 in Kassel, West Germany. The artistic director was Arnold Bode Arnold Bode (23 December 1900 – 3 O ...

). In 1962 he was called to the ''Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden Künste'' / State Academy of Fine Arts Stuttgart.

Ben Willikens Ben is frequently used as a shortened version of the given names Benjamin, Benedict, Bennett or Benson, and is also a given name in its own right. Ben (in he, בֶּן, ''son of'') forms part of Hebrew surnames, e.g. Abraham ben Abraham ( h ...

was one of his students among others. From 1965, Trökes taught painting at the ''Hochschule für bildende Künste'', today

Berlin University of the Arts The Universität der Künste Berlin (UdK; also known in English as the Berlin University of the Arts), situated in Berlin, Germany, is the largest art school in Europe. It is a public art and design school, and one of the four research universit ...

. In the same year he also designed a Church window in Leonberg near Stuttgart. In 1966, he experimented with Georg Muche on ''Helio-Klischographs'' in

Kassel Kassel (; in Germany, spelled Cassel until 1926) is a city on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Kassel and the district of the same name and had 201,048 inhabitants in December 2 ...

with the aim of manufacturing electrically controlled prints. The quiet images were succeeded by intensively coloured ones. Many of his topics seem rather being influenced by his travels around the world. Heinz Trökes died in

Berlin Berlin is Capital of Germany, the capital and largest city of Germany, both by area and List of cities in Germany by population, by population. Its more than 3.85 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European U ...

on 22 April 1997.

Selected works

Glasmosaik von Heinz Trökes, Katharinenschule Hamburg

* ''Die Mondkanone'' (Moon Cannon) (Berlin, Berlinische Galerie – Museum for Modern Art, Photography and Architecture), 1946; oil on canvas * ''Sphärische Kontraste'' (Spheric Contrasts), 1948; oil on canvas,

Neue Nationalgalerie The Neue Nationalgalerie (New National Gallery) at the Kulturforum is a museum for modern art in Berlin, with its main focus on the early 20th century. It is part of the National Gallery of the Berlin State Museums. The museum building and its ...

, Berlin * ''Am Mars'' (On Mars), 1948; oil on canvas, Neues Museum,

Weimar Weimar is a city in the state (Germany), state of Thuringia, Germany. It is located in Central Germany (cultural area), Central Germany between Erfurt in the west and Jena in the east, approximately southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg an ...

* ''In der Luft und im Wasser'' (In the Air and in the Water), 1950; oil on canvas, The

Busch-Reisinger Museum The Harvard Art Museums are part of Harvard University and comprise three museums: the Fogg Museum (established in 1895), the Busch-Reisinger Museum (established in 1903), and the Arthur M. Sackler Museum (established in 1985), and four research ...

/Harvard Art Museums,

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge beca ...

, USA * ''Zwischen Wolken und Kristallen'' (Between Clouds and Crystals), 1951; oil on canvas.

Albright-Knox Art Gallery The Buffalo AKG Art Museum, formerly known as the Albright–Knox Art Gallery, is an art museum at 1285 Elmwood Avenue, Buffalo, New York, in Delaware Park. the museum's Elmwood Avenue campus is temporarily closed for construction. It hosted ...

, Buffalo, USA * ''Echo'', 1954; oil on canvas, Lehmbruck Museum, Duisburg * ''Für Artisten'' (For Artists), 1954; oil on canvas, Sprengel Museum Hannover * ''Wunschbild für Geologen'' (Ideal for Geologists) 1956; oil on canvas,

, Berlin * Glass mosaic in the Katharinenschule, Hamburg-Hafencity. Production: Puhl & Wagner. Originally for the XI Triennale, Milan. Acquired in 1958/59 by the Hamburg Senate and restored and realised in 2009/10 by the Münchner Hofmanufaktur. Former location: ''Volksschule an der Katharinenkirche'' (primary school at St. Catherine’s Church). * ''Lettern einer Schrift'' (Letters of a Document); etching on laid paper, 1960.

Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It plays a major role in developing and collecting modern art, ...

, New York, USA * ''Augenreise'' (Eye Journey), 1968; Rembrandt Verlag, Berlin -

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The librar ...

, Washington

Selected exhibitions

* 1949 Solo exhibition in the

Kaiser-Wilhelm-Museum The Kunstmuseen Krefeld (''Krefeld Art Museums'') is an art museum in Krefeld, Germany. It is particularly dedicated to modern and contemporary art. Three houses constitute the museum—the Kaiser Wilhelm Museum, Haus Lange and Haus Esters. ...

, Krefeld. Participation in the ''Kunst in Deutschland 1930-1949'' (Art in Germany 1930-1949) exhibition, Zurich * 1953 Solo exhibitions in the

Von der Heydt Museum The Von der Heydt Museum is a museum in Wuppertal, Germany. The Von der Heydt Museum includes works by artists from the 17th century to the present time. History The museum is housed in the former city hall of Elberfeld, which in 1902 becam ...

Wuppertal Wuppertal (; "'' Wupper Dale''") is, with a population of approximately 355,000, the seventh-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia as well as the 17th-largest city of Germany. It was founded in 1929 by the merger of the cities and to ...

, and in the Städtisches Museum (Municipal museum),

Braunschweig Braunschweig () or Brunswick ( , from Low German ''Brunswiek'' , Braunschweig dialect: ''Bronswiek'') is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, north of the Harz Mountains at the farthest navigable point of the river Oker, which connects it to the ...

, participation in the 2nd São Paulo Art Biennial * 1954 Exhibition participation: ''duitse kunst na 1945'' (German Art after 1945),

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

, Stedelijk Museum * 1955 Participation in

documenta ''documenta'' is an exhibition of contemporary art which takes place every five years in Kassel, Germany. The ''documenta'' was founded by artist, teacher and curator Arnold Bode in 1955 as part of the Bundesgartenschau (Federal Horticultura ...

I, Kassel * 1959 Participation in

documenta II II. documenta was the second edition of documenta, a quinquennial contemporary art exhibition. It was held between 11 July and 1 October 1959 in Kassel, West Germany. The artistic director was Arnold Bode in collaboration with art historian We ...

, Kassel * 1964 Participation in

, Kassel * 1966 Solo exhibition in the Museu de Arte Moderna do Rio de Janeiro * 1972 Participation in Continental Painting and Sculpture, 1942–72 in the

* 1979 Solo exhibitions in the Akademie der Künste (Academy of arts), Berlin, and in the Lehmbruck Museum, Duisburg * 1983 Solo exhibition in the

Berlin (sketchbooks presented by Trökes to the Nationalgalerie on the occasion of his 70th birthday) * 1985 Exhibition participation in the Nationalgalerie in Berlin: Kunst in der Bundesrepublik Deutschland 1945–1985 (Art in the Federal Republic of Germany 1945–1985) * 1995 Solo exhibition in the Berlin Kupferstichkabinett (Museum of Prints and Drawings) (gift of the sketchbooks 1984–1994) * 2003 Werke und Dokumente (Works and documents) –

Germanisches Nationalmuseum The Germanisches National Museum is a museum in Nuremberg, Germany. Founded in 1852, it houses a large collection of items relating to German culture and art extending from prehistoric times through to the present day. The Germanisches National ...

Nuremberg Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...

. A catalogue with 122 pages and numerous colors and black-and-white illustrations appeared for the exhibition. * 2003 Über dem Realen, Werke und Dokumente aus fünfzig Jahren (Above the real, works and documents from fifty years - major monographic show); Neues Museum Weimar * 2009 Participation: Art of Two Germanys/Cold War Cultures; Los Angeles County Museum of Arts - LACAMA; Kunst und Kalter Krieg; Deutsche Positionen 1945– 1989(Art and Cold War; German positions 1945-1989), Germanisches Nationalmuseum, Nuremberg. Then:

Deutsches Historisches Museum The German Historical Museum (german: Deutsches Historisches Museum), known by the acronym DHM, is a museum in Berlin, Germany devoted to German history. It describes itself as a place of "enlightenment and understanding of the shared history ...

, Berlin * 2013 ELDORADO. Zum 100. Geburtstag von Heinz Trökes (On the occasion of the 100th birthday of Heinz Trökes), Lehmbruck Museum, Duisburg * 2018 Participation: INVENTUR - ART IN GERMANY 1943-1955,

Harvard Art Museums The Harvard Art Museums are part of Harvard University and comprise three museums: the Fogg Museum (established in 1895), the Busch-Reisinger Museum (established in 1903), and the Arthur M. Sackler Museum (established in 1985), and four research ...

, Cambridge, MA, USA

Legacy

The written legacy, including the journals, was endowed to the ''Deutsches Kunstarchiv'' (German art archive) in the Germanisches Nationalmuseum. The sketchbooks were donated to the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin (Berlin State Museums), the Kupferstichkabinett Berlin (Museum of Prints and Drawings).

Catalogues raisonnés

* Markus Krause: Heinz Trökes. Werkverzeichnis (Catalogue raisonné of the oil-paintings). Prestel Verlag, Munich/Berlin/London/New York 2003, . * Online catalogue raisonné on the official website o
Trökes-Archive

External links

Literature by and about Heinz Trökes in the catalogue of the German National Library

Official website of Heinz Trökes
(english)
Heinz Trökes on Oxford Art Online

by and about Heinz Trökes at the documenta archives library catalogue

Heinz Trökes on European Art Net

Heinz Trökes at the Berlinische Galerie

City in Ruins at Berlinische Gallery

* ttps://www.askart.com/auction_records/Heinz_Trokes/11076342/Heinz_Trokes.aspx?shp=Heinz%20Trökes Heinz Trökes at Ask Art
Heinz Trökes on artnet.com

Heinz Trökes at Mutual Art

Heinz Trökes on IFAR
(

International Foundation for Art Research The International Foundation for Art Research (IFAR) is a non-profit organization which was established to channel and coordinate scholarly and technical information about works of art. IFAR provides an administrative and legal framework within wh ...

)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Trokes, Heinz German male painters Abstract painters German printmakers 20th-century German painters Academic staff of the Berlin University of the Arts 1913 births 1997 deaths