ERFURTH, HUGO

born Oct. 14, 1874, Halle, Brandenburg died Feb. 14, 1948, Gaienhofen, W.Ger. German photographer noted mainly for his portraits of artists, intellectuals, and celebrities of the 1920s. Erfurth studied art (189296) at the Academy of Arts, Dresden. He worked at portrait photography in Dresden from 1896 until about 1925, when he began to produce photograms (shadowlike photographs made by placing an object between a light source and light-sensitive paper) and industrial photography. He worked in Cologne from 1934 to 1943 and in Gaienhofen from 1943 until his death. From 1924 to 1948 he was chairman of the jury of the prestigious Gesellschaft Deutscher Lichtbildner (GDL). His simple, natural use of light and his psychological insight into the character of each of his subjects combined with his mastery of the techniques of oil pigment printing to create a high standard for portraiture. Much of his extensive nonportrait work was destroyed during World War II.