Fritz Schwegler, German Sculptor, 1935-2014

Fritz Schwegler (2008) Photo: Courtesy Kunstverein Eislingen

Fritz Schwegler died on Tuesday at the age of 79, the dpa reports. Best known for his sculptures, which were often displayed in the public realm, Schwegler was, in fact, a true interdisciplinary practitioner, painting, drawing, writing, and making music, aside from his sculptural work. He took part in two Documenta exhibitions, numbers five and eight, and served as a professor at the Kunstakademie in Düsseldorf.

It’s with this work at the Kunstakademie, where his legacy perhaps most greatly resonates. His influence on his students, now prominent contemporary artists such as Katharina Fritsch, Thomas Demand, and Martin Honert is extremely apparent. Looking at Schwegler’s miniature sculptures of quotidian, household objects, one is immediately reminded of Demand’s model-based photographs and animations.


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