Zoltán Kluger

1896-1977

Biography

Born in Kecskemét, Hungary. In 1914 to 1916 he was a aerial photographer of the Austro-Hungarian Army.  Supposedly he learned the principles of photography from this working experience during the war. In 1928 he moves to Berlin with his family, and starts to work there as a photojournalist, with his partner Wilhelm von Szigethy. Among their clients is Erich Mendelsohn expressionist architect, and they also collaborate with several remarkable journals, such as Berliner Illustrierte Zeitung, Uhu, and RegPress.

 

In Berlin, Kluger is introduced to the art of graphics, advertising, photomontage, and radical photojournalism. In this period, he makes friends with Martin Munkácsi, and the journalist Nachman Shifrin, who is the later founder of The Orient Press Company.  After Hitler comes into power, it becomes forbidden for German journals to work with jewish photographers. Kluger emigrates to Palestine, and in the same year, his friend Nachman Shifrin settles there too, and plans to set up a photo agency, which would collaborate with Zionist organizations. His works are shown in several international group exhibitions, in Paris, London and Vienna.  The first retrospective solo exhibition of his oeuvre takes place in The Eretz Israel Museum in Tel-Aviv in 2008.

Related artworks

Erich Mendelsohn at work (1928)

Zoltán Kluger

1,520,000 HUF