Otto Eckmann

Otto Eckmann ( born November 19, 1865 in Hamburg, † June 11, 1902 in Badenweiler ) was a German painter, printmaker and typographer.

Life and work

Eckmann completed a commercial apprenticeship and afterwards studied at the School of Applied Arts in Hamburg and the School of Applied Arts in Nuremberg (now the Academy of Fine Arts Nuremberg). In the years 1885 to 1890 Otto Eckmann joined to study painting at the Art Academy in Munich. Not without success until 1894 he worked as a painter, but then he turned to graphic design as well as designs for the arts and crafts, especially for textile embroidery.

Eckmann was one of the main representatives of the " floral " in the direction of Art Nouveau. At first he devoted himself to landscape painting, but later worked mostly as a designer and graphic artist. He created the title and ornaments for the magazines Pan and Youth and the signet of the S. Fischer Verlag. As an employee of Kunstwebschule Scherrebek he created with the wall hanging five swans "one of the coats of arms of Art Nouveau".

On behalf of Karl Klingspor, the then head of the Rudhardschen type foundry in Offenbach, drew Eckmann 1899 a new alphabet for the lettering pressure. Thus, he created the eponymous publication, which is the most used art nouveau font today.

By 1902, he designed for the Cologne Chocolate producer Ludwig Stollwerck collecting images for a fee of 1,000 marks.

The Eckmannsweg in Hamburg- Barmbek is named after him.

Waldteich

Night Heron, woodcut 1896

Five Swans, 1897

Blé