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Ernst Fuchs (1930–2015): Pioneer of Fantastic Realism and Viennese Surrealist Tradition

Ernst Fuchs was born on February 13, 1930 in Vienna, Austria. His father, Maximilian Fuchs, son of an orthodox Jewish family, had turned down a career as a Rabbi, leaving his theological studies uncompleted. He married Leopoldine, a Christian. When the Nazis occupied Austria in March 1938, Maximilian Fuchs emigrated to Shanghai. Ernst remained in Vienna together with his mother, but Nazi legislation made it illegal for Leopoldine to raise her son. Ernst was deported to a transit camp for children of mixed racial origin. Thereupon Leopoldine Fuchs agrees to a formal divorce from her husband, thus saving her son from the extermination camp.

• Early Education and Artistic Beginnings: Ernst Fuchs’ artistic talent was undeniable, so his teacher decided to include extracurricular subjects like painting and sculpting in his education. He subsequently received tuition from Professor Fröhlich and Emmy Steinböck.
• Vienna Academy of Fine Arts: He entered the academy with Arik Brauer, Rudolf Hausner, Fritz Janschka, Wolfgang Hutter, and Anton Lehmden, together with whom he later founded what has become known as the Vienna School of Fantastic Realism.
• The Vienna School of Fantastic Realism: This school was influenced by Gustav Klimt and egon schiele and then by max pechstein, heinrich campendonck, edvard munch, henry moore and pablo picasso.

Technique and Artistic Style – Mischtechnik and Jewel-Like Effects

Fuchs studied sculpture with Emmy Steinbock (1943), attended the St Anna Painting School where he studied under professor Robin C. Anderson, later moving to the class of Albert Paris von Gütersloh. At the academy, he met Arik Brauer, Rudolf Hausner, Fritz Janschka, Wolfgang Hutter, and Anton Lehmden, together with whom he later founded what has become known as the Vienna School of Fantastic Realism. He was also a founding member of the art-club (1946), as well as the hundsgruppe, set up in opposition to it in 1951, together with friedensreich hundertwasser and arnulf rainer. Fuchs adopted the mischtechnik – mixed technique – which combined egg tempera with oil paints glazed with resin. This method aimed to achieve vivid lighting effects reminiscent of old masters like Albrecht Altdorfer, Albrecht Dürer, Matthias Grünewald and Martin Schongauer.

Influences and Inspirations

Fuchs’ work was influenced by the art of Gustav Klimt and egon schiele and then by max pechstein, heinrich campendonck, edvard munch, henry moore and pablo picasso. He sought inspiration in ancient alchemy and religion; Christian and Jewish mysticism but also deep psychology. His favourite examples at the time were the mannerists, especially Jacques Callot, and he was also very much influenced by jan van eyck and jean fouquet.

Major Achievements and Legacy

Fuchs returned to Vienna in 1961 and had a vision of what he called the verschollener stil (hidden prime of styles), the theory of which he set forth in his inspired and grandiose book architectura caelestis: die bilder des verschollenen stils (salzburg, 1966). He designed stage sets for Mozart and Richard Wagner operas. He restored Otto Wagner Villa in Hütteldorf and inaugurated Ernst Fuchs Museum in 1988. His monumental Last Supper was commissioned by Dormition Abbey on Mount Zion. He created three altar paintings on parchment for the Rosenkranzkirche in Hetzendorf, vienna.

Concluding Remarks

Ernst Fuchs died at the age of 85 on November 9, 2015. Fuchs’s contribution to Viennese art history is undeniable. He established a unique artistic style that combined surrealism with realism and explored profound themes of spirituality and mythology. His legacy continues to inspire artists today.