The Life and Art of Viktor Planckh
Born in Opava, Czech Republic, Viktor Planckh was a painter, graphic artist, sculptor, and illustrator. His artistic journey began at the Kunstgewerbeschule Wien, where he studied under instructors such as Viktor Schufinsky, Adolf Boehm, Franz Cizek, and Bertold Löffler. Following his studies, he became a member of the Hagenbund, participating in their exhibitions from 1927 to 1938.
His creative output was diverse, encompassing oil paintings, watercolors, gouaches, and ink drawings, as well as sculptures in terracotta and bronze. His work often focused on figure compositions, portraits, still lifes, landscapes, and nudes. His compositions were characterized by clarity and simplicity, often adopting a style described as sachlich. In his landscape paintings from 1927 onwards, he utilized a Neoclassical style, while some of his compositions took on the character of a medieval-naive perspective.
Travels and Later Years
Planckh’s career was marked by extensive travel. He visited Paris in 1926, Italy in 1927, and traveled through Budapest, Belgrade, and Saloniki to reach Athens in 1929. He also spent time in the United States, exhibiting in New York and Philadelphia, and traveled to the Soviet Union, where he created his "Russian Folder."
In 1931, he contributed to the "Das neue Fresko" exhibition in Salzburg, creating the cartoon "Obsternte" in Grödig. Later in life, he moved into his own studio and house, known as the Fuchsbau, in Wien-Pötzleinsdorf. In 1941, he was called up to the Wehrmacht as a driver and sent to Greece, where he documented the campaign through gouaches. He died in Athens in 1941.
