Life and Artistic Journey
Hans Reichel was a German painter and draftsman born in Würzburg, Germany. After completing his schooling and receiving artistic training at the Malschule von Hans Hoffmann, he moved to Munich in 1918. During his time in Munich, he lived in the same house, the Werneck-Schlössl, as Paul Klee. Through his connection with Klee, Reichel became acquainted with Wassily Kandinsky in Weimar. Following travels to Switzerland and Italy with his friend Carl Holly, he settled in Paris in 1929. He later became a French citizen in 1949. Reichel's life was marked by significant challenges, including internment in the Camp de Gurs and living in hiding in Begué, France, during the war years. He died in Paris.
Style and Notable Works
Reichel's work is characterized by a sense of playfulness and dreamlike scenes. His small-format paintings feature delicate, fairy-tale-like depictions. His style is described as neither purely abstract nor entirely concrete, and his work is associated with the Nouvelle École de Paris and lyrical abstraction.
His catalog includes the following work:
In 1937, during the Nazi "Entartete Kunst" actions, his oil painting Urns (1926) and his watercolor d’or vielle (1928) were confiscated; the former was subsequently destroyed.
