Hugo Leven (1874 – 1956) German Sculptor and Metalsmith

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Tea service designed by Hugo Leven
Tea service designed by Hugo Leven

Hugo Leven (1874 – 1956) was a German Sculptor and designer.

Education

Leven studied at the Kunstgewerbeschule and then at the Düsseldorf Art Academy. He worked in his father Louis Leven’s studio for a time, had numerous contacts with French artists who strongly influenced him, and quickly became known. Engelbert Kayser hired him as the first employee in his studio. From 1895 to 1904, Leven designed numerous models for Kayserzinn; his works had a lasting influence on the Art Nouveau pewter foundry. He also worked for the Kreuter company in Hanau and other companies that manufactured metal, silver and earthenware, such as B. Koch & Bergfeld and WMF.

Exhibitions

In 1906, Leven’s works were shown at the Third German Applied Arts Exhibition in Dresden; he also participated in world exhibitions.

From 1909 to 1933, he taught at the drawing academy of the college for the precious metal industry in Hanau, where he became director. His students included Wilhelm Wagenfeld, Christian Dell, and Herbert Zeitner. In 1933, he lost his job. After the Second World War, he headed the reconstruction of the drawing academy, which began operations again in 1947. 

In 2001/2002, there was an exhibition about Leven and his works in the Historisches Museum Hanau in Schloss Philippsruhe in Hanau and the district museum Zons.

Sources

Byars, M., & Riley, T. (2004). The design encyclopedia. Laurence King Publishing.

“Hugo Leven” page. In: Wikipedia – The free encyclopedia. Processing status: August 2, 2019, 14:45 UTC. URL: https://de.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Hugo_Leven&oldid=190978977 (Accessed: November 17, 2021, 02:28 UTC)

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