Franz Eichhorst Biography

Franz Eichhorst (1885-1948) was a German painter, engraver and illustrator, one of a number of German artists known for his war paintings supporting the Nazi regime.

Eichhorst volunteered for military service for Germany in World War I. In the early 1920s, Eichhorst set up a summer studio in Matrei in Osttirol. There in 1928, he created one of his most well-known works, Mädchen mit Krug (Girl with Pitcher).

In 1938 he created a series of war and Nazi propaganda murals representing the last 25 years of German history for the Schöneberg city hall in Berlin; these were repainted and deleted at the end of World War II in May 1945. In April 1938, Adolf Hitler bestowed upon him the honorary title of Professor. Over 50 of his paintings were displayed at the Great German art exhibition (Große Deutsche Kunstausstellung) at the then Haus der deutschen Kunst in Munich, including battle scenes from the Second World War, particularly those from the conflicts with Poland and Russia.