Rudolf Riege

Biography

Book jackets, publicity, wood engravings. Born Rudolf Friedrich Emmo Riege 9 March 1892 in Hameln (Hamlin). From 1909: studied at the Weimar Hochschule für bildende Kunst: a teacher was Walther Klemm; also attends classes at Bauhaus. 1915-17: military service ; wounded at Verdun. Turns to wood engraving after the war. 1924-5: with Wilhelm Schmidt forms the publishing house Holzblock-Presse (Woodblock Press), specialising in illustrated books. Illustrates numerous fables and war scenes. 1926-8: lived in Berlin. From 1928: lived in Hameln. 1937: awarded Silver Medal, Paris World’s Fair. During World War II he was a war artist, first with the Labour Service on the Channel coast (Sonderführer) then with a Luftwaffe unit. 1945: captured in Belgium. Died 22 November 1959.

Writings about

  • Kurt Matthies, ‘Der Holzschneider von Hameln’, Deutsches Volkstum, 1934, pp. 833-4
  • H. Weber, ‘Der deutsche Holzschnitt der Gegenwart’, Die Kunst im Deutschen Reich, Nov. 1941, pp. 308-20, esp. p. 318
  • Graphik, Oct. 1957, p. 18 (illustration)
  • Vollmer, 1958 (includes bibliography)
  • MGD, 1992
  • Benezit, 2006.
  • Hans Bockwitz, ‘Junge deutsche Büchkunstler’, Archiv für Buchgewerbe und Gebrauchsgraphik, Leipzig: Deutsche Buchgewerbeverein., Nov. 1934, pp. 699-784, esp. p. 701
  • Eberhard Hölscher, ‘Comments on German book illustration’, Archiv für Buchgewerbe und Gebrauchsgraphik, Leipzig: Deutsche Buchgewerbeverein., Jan. 1937, pp. 1-20
  • Archiv für Buchgewerbe und Gebrauchsgraphik, Leipzig: Deutsche Buchgewerbeverein., 1938, pp. 374, 376 (woodcuts)

Exhibitions

  • Deutsche Buchgewerbeverein, Leipzig, and Academy of Fine Arts, Berlin, 1936
  • Langenwallschule, Hameln, 1951.