Friedrich Teubel

23.2.1884 Stuhlweißenburg 14.6.1965 Vienna

Friedrich Teubel was born on February 23rd, 1884 in Stuhlweißenburg as a son of an Austrian officer. At the age of six he and his parents moved to Vienna where he – according to family tradition, after attending junior high school was to join the Military Academy. However, he was dreaming of studying at the Academy of Fine Arts. First of all, his talent for drawing was reflected in portraits of his teachers, who kindly tolerated the misuse of their lessons as the paintings were already surprisingly good.

The young Teubel got support and promotion by an artistically very talented relative who was an aquarellist. Because of a severe illness of his father his wish, to start the desired studies of arts, could not be fulfilled, and so he decided to attend the Technical Military Academy at Mödling near Vienna. There, too, his talents didn’t remain undiscovered, therefore he was chiefly destined for landscape drawing. From 1905 on, his life was formed by military tasks. In 1917 they called him off the front line to be a constructor in the munition section, and he obtained the title of an engineer. After the end of the war he started working as a bank clerk.

There was a decisive turn in Teubel’s life when he happened to meet a painter who advised him to convert his sketches into etchings; and, although he worked only as an autodidact, his attempts turned out well.

It can be seen as a lucky coincidence that he made a first acquaintance with Alfred Cossmann who realized Teubel’s talent and who in 1925 enabled his admission as an extraordinary student at the Graphische Lehr- und Versuchsanstalt in Vienna. He spent two years with Professor Alfred Cossmann and his assistant Leo Frank, and he acquired knowledge in ornamental writing at Professor Larisch.

The works of Friedrich Teubel were shown in exhibitions at home and abroad and earned justified appreciation.

One can take it for granted that personal blows of fate contributed to lead his work to such unbelievable heights – a fact that can only be achieved by immense diligence and discipline.

Although having already exceeded the middle of his lifetime, he turned to the time – consuming technique of engraving in which he reached highest technical and artistic quality.

In 1964, fate hit him once more mercilessly – a slight stroke reduced his creative power, nevertheless he continued his work; on June 14th, 1965, death set an end to this abundant life.