Hainer Hill

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Hainer Hill
Hainer Hill at work, c. 1956
Born
Heinrich Hill

(1913-07-28)28 July 1913
Eberstadt, German Empire
Died20 August 2001(2001-08-20) (aged 88)
Karlsruhe, Germany
EducationStädel'sche Kunstschule
Occupations
  • Scenic designer
  • Costume designer
  • Painter
  • Graphic artist
  • Theatre photographer
Organizations

Hainer Hill (born Heinrich Hill; 28 July 1913 – 20 August 2001) was a German scenic designer, costume designer, painter, graphic artist and theatre photographer who was based in Berlin and worked internationally. After studying painting in Frankfurt, he worked at the

Akademie der Künste. When the Berlin Wall was erected, Hill, who lived in the West and had worked in the East, began to work freelance, including at the Royal Opera House. In 1966 he became director of scenery (Ausstattunggsleiter) at Opernhaus Dortmund, and there he created the stage for the world premiere of Eli
by Walter Steffens, which was followed by 45 other productions. Hill is best remembered for his focus on light projection.

Life and work

1913–1945

Born in

watercolours, drawings, and oil paintings. He then worked as an assistant to Ludwig Sievert, the chief scenic designer at the Städtische Bühnen Frankfurt.[2]: 11–12  In December 1935, with a scholarship, he was a 'master student' (Meisterschüler [de]) of Franz Karl Delavilla at Städel'sche Kunstschule. Hill's focus became the use of lighting, and its influence on the space on stage and its relation to the dynamic of music. At the Oper Frankfurt, he met the designer Caspar Neher, and made projections realising Neher's ideas,[1][2]: 17–21 [1] for projects in Frankfurt, later also in Berlin, Darmstadt, Hamburg, Glyndebourne, Berlin and Vienna, for 34 productions between 1936 and 1951.[2]
: 21–25 

1945–1961

After World War II, Hill worked as scenic designer at the Städtische Bühnen Gera and then at the

West-Berlin in 1954, which made later international work possible. When the opera house Unter den Linden was reopened, he designed the stage for Alban Berg's Wozzeck, played on 14 December 1955, conducted by Johannes Schüler and staged by Werner Kelch, which became an unexpected success.[4][2]: 42–51  He created designs for Elektra by Richard Strauss, Gluck's Orpheus und Eurydike, Borodin's Fürst Igor, Egk's Der Revisor, Jean Kurt Forest's Tai Yang erwacht and Mussorgski's Chowanschtschina.[2]: 42–51  In 1959, Hill held a Master class for projection painting at the Bayreuth Festival. He designed the set for the first scenic presentation of Bach's St Matthew Passion in Europe at the Teatro Massimo in Palermo, conducted by Hermann Scherchen[2]
: 51–52 

1961–2001

The building of the

Schweyk im Zweiten Weltkrieg, with Helmut Lohner and Christiane Hörbiger in the leading roles. He then turned to designs and drawings.[2]
: 54–61 

Hill died on 20 August 2001 in Karlsruhe. His gravestone shows his motto: "Die Seele des Bühnenraums ist das Licht. Es gibt der Phantasie des Betrachters die notwendige Orientierung" ("The lighting is the soul of the stage. From it, the imagination of the audience gets the orientation it needs".) His estate is held at three locations, by Deutsches Theatermuseum, in the Generallandesarchiv Karlsruhe [de], and in the Bertolt-Brecht-Archiv der Akademie der Künste [de], especially his photographs of Brecht's performances with the Berliner Ensemble.[3]

Further reading

  • Die Gewehre der Frau Carrar: Mit 22 Fotos aus der Aufführung des Berliner Ensemble (in German), Berlin: Aufbau-Verlag, 1961
  • Käthe Flamm (1974), Kulturamt der Stadt Dortmund (ed.), "Hainer Hill, der Bühnenbildner", Hier. Dortmunder Kulturarbeit. Rückblick (in German), no. 31 oder 32, Dortmund: Wulff & Co., pp. 22–25
  • Ingvelde Geleng (1974), Kulturamt der Stadt Dortmund (ed.), "Meister der Projektion. Hainer Hills Beitrag zum zeitgenössischen Bühnenbild", Hier. Dortmunder Kulturarbeit. Rückblick (in German), no. 31 oder 32, Dortmund: Wulff & Co., pp. 26–28
  • Lothar Schirmer, Dirk Praller (2005), Thomas Lindemann (ed.), Bühnen-Bilder. Hainer Hill und die Kunst der Projektion, Lindemanns Bibliothek 26 (in German), Karlsruhe: Info Verlag,
    ISBN 3-88190-415-8
  • Lothar Schirmer (1998), Museumspädagogischer Dienst Berlin (ed.), "Bertolt Brecht und Caspar Neher", Museumsjournal. Berichte aus Museen, Schlössern und Sammlungen in Berlin und Potsdam, Berliner Museen (in German), vol. 6. Folge, no. I, Berlin, pp. 35–36,
    ISSN 0933-0593

References

  1. ^
    ISBN 978-3-32-283300-6
    .
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Schirmer, Lothar; Praller, Dirk (2005). Lindemann, Thomas (ed.). Bühnen-Bilder. Hainer Hill und die Kunst der Projektion. Lindemanns Bibliothek 26 (in German). Karlsruhe: Info Verlag.
  3. ^
    Akademie der Künste
    . 2014. Retrieved 8 August 2002.
  4. ^ Thomas, Annette, ed. (February 2019). "Landesarchiv Berlin C Rep. 167 / Deutsche Staatsoper" (PDF). content.landesarchiv-berlin.de (in German). Retrieved 25 July 2020.
  5. ^ "Hainer Hill". archiviostorico.operaroma.it (in Italian). Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  6. ^ "Lohengrin". Royal Opera House. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  7. ^ "Mathis der Maler / Performances". Schott Music. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
  8. ^ Steffens, Walter. "Werke / Works". walter-steffens.de. Retrieved 8 August 2020.

External links

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