Germany 1890-1910, Part 2 - the Art of Otto Greiner

I've done two previous series on the talented German artist Otto Greiner (1869-1916),

and I've recently come across enough "new" material to do a third.  This photo is from 1900.

He was a protegee' of Max Klinger, an artist I'll feature in a future series.

 

It's hard to read the date on this Greiner sketch of a reclining male nude, but it was certainly during the 1880s, which would place it in the artist's student years.  Greiner was taught that the nude was foundational to art, and art historian Sepp Kern said of  him:

"The nude was central to his interests: like Klinger he saw it a the epitome of beauty in nature and believed that it should be the basis for all stylistic formation."

 

Greiner's untimely death at age 46 left a lot of people in the art world wondering if he'd reached his full potential.  Very meticulous, he would often do multiple studies of various sections before committing to a particular version of a major work.  This is one of four different studies I have found of the same character in a large painting of Ulysses being tied to the mast so he could hear the sirens.  And this was just the guy who tied Ulysses up.  Click to label to see the finished version.

 

This is a detail from a larger lithograph Greiner 

did in tribute to his mentor Max Klinger.

 

Greiner got his professional start in etching and lithography, and this handsome 

bearish gentleman is a good example of his work in that medium.  Although it's 

utterly G-rated, but I know a bear fancier or two out there who will no doubt love it.

 

There are two distinct versions of the main subject in this Greiner drawing, plus a loosely done third image that seems to be the same model from a different angle.  It is dated 1892 when Greiner would have been age 23.  That was the same year he finished his studies in Rome under Max Klinger and moved to Munich to begin his own career using Klinger's vacant studio.

Disclosure:  I used software to remove yellowing and increase contrast to show detail.

 

Like much of my Greiner collection, I think this drawing of an enraptured man dancing with two women is a study for a more complete work.  Unfortunately,  I can't find any other version,

so it might be something other than study, such as an academic piece or just a stray drawing.

 

Early 20th Century German Day, Part 2 - The Art of Otto Greiner

Otto Greiner (1869-1916) was a German painter and graphic designer, and the second half of German Day features his work.  This is a self portrait of the artist.

I keep hoping to find a finished work that includes this study,

but so far I haven't.

I actually like this study for Odysseus and the Sirens 

better than the part of the finished work it went into.

If the previous post was a study for this painting of Odysseus and the Sirens as I think,

Greiner made some significant changes to the rowers.

Otto Greiner knew how to draw men from the rear, as seen here.

If my German doesn't fail me, this was a study for a work commemorating 

the silver anniversary of Colonel Fischer in Munich.  What a naked guy sitting 

in a pensive pose has to do with all that, I don't know.

The 19th C. Germans, Part 2 - the art of Otto Greiner

Otto Greiner (1869-1919) was a German painter and lithographer whose art was quirky by the standards of his time.  He was a close friend of Max Klinger and studied with him in Italy for a time.  Some of Greiner's art has themes of various mythological types as well as a few religious references.  This 1911 photo is supposedly cropped from a bigger one.  Too bad we can't see it all.

Greiner did this 1912 standing male nude with a mask partially using the heliogravure technique, an early form of photographic reproduction.

This is a student academic piece by Greiner with the usual stamp.

I don't know what is going on in this odd unfinished Greiner painting, but I like it.

In fact, I'm sure I would like to have been there, whatever it was.

Here we have a study for Ulysses and the Sirens, the full color version of which I will feature in a later series. Greiner seems to have done some additional work to the heads and faces
of two of the men with updated versions at the bottom of the drawing.

Greiner definitely had a weird side as witnessed by this lithograph called The Mortar of Life.

This oil painting titled simply Standing Male Nude is something 

of a contrast to the more avant garde style of most of Greiner's work.