Eberhard Franke, a native citizen of Berlin, used all the time of his life to study the history of his hometown and made it to it's duty to portrait it in all facets. The early etchings testify both - the solidarity with the view of his Scharfenberger "drawing teacher" Siegfried Kühl in the free conversion of organic forms as well as the beginning of organizations, in which reality is reduced to basic forms. Between 1958 and 1964 he studied arts at the University of Art in Berlin (today U.D.K). Here he became acquainted with Ed Dickman, who had come from the USA to Berlin. Together they took a studio after the exam in the legendary Schoeneberger studio Grossgoerschenstrasse 1. While the colleagues drifted with increasing success into the abstraction, which pure Expression or head commitment, Franke remained always with his Sujet, with his Berlin. Against the trend of the then modern abstaction and the informel Franke processes increasingly impressions of visible architecture in the neighbourhood, ruins or fronts of houses drawn by the war. He uses the effect of different perspectives likewise as those of the graphic printings he studied in the university with Professor Teuber. Steubenplatz, Reichstrasse, Tegel-Center - in the smallest detail Franke cut the large and the small views of Berlin places with his cold needle on zinc. Franke always retained himself his love for the small people, made portraits of his environment. As chronicler he was therefore with Edwin Dickman ideal occupation for the anniversary exhibition from the 11.9. - 26.9.2004 in the Schoeneberger city hall, on the occasion of its 90-years existence. The large triumph he should no more experience. His pictures will tell further the histories of Berlin.
(Source: Nicola Kuhn, the Berlin-chronicler Tagesspiegel from 9.9.04 and the list of works of Eberhard Franke, etchings 1957 – 1995 (compilation by Bernd Sieme).

Vita
Eberhard Franke was born in 29.2.1936 in Berlin. By the early death of its parents and due to war confusions he grow up in different homes and then with care parents in Berlin Reinickendorf. In the summer 1951 he got a place in the boarding school Schulfarm Scharfenberg in Berlin Tegelort, in the meantime visiting the 9.class of the Secondary Modern School. Due to the advice of his head master at that time Dr. Pewesin, he changed to the 9.class of the High School and insisted 1957 his Higher School Certificate. During the years in Scharfenberg his art educator Siegfried Kühl recognized and promoted
Frankes artistic gift; followed by study of the art pedagogic in the HdK Berlin starting from 1957, his professors were Georg Kinzer and Mac Zimmermann. Franke passed 1963 the first state examination. Jerky years followed. As an unskilled worker and a conductor he struck laboriously by the lives, kept then however by switching of old friends 1971 "his" studio in the Grossgoerschenstr.1 in Schöneberg again. Since this time Franke was active as free artists. First with the gallery Taube, Berlin, then with other Berlin galleries – Galerie Oberlicht "skylight", "Galerieladen am Jungfernstieg" - he becomes well known also outside of Berlin. Eberhard Frankes works are in the collections of the “Berlinische Gallerie”, the “Kupferstichkabinett Berlin, the “Graphothek Berlin”, the Rijksmuseum, the British LIBRARY and further public and private collections. Eberhard Franke died at 7.9.2004 during the exhibition preparations for a large exhibition "40 years friendship of the studio community Grossgoerschenstrasse 1" (with his artist friend Edwin Dickman) in the exhibition hall of the city hall of Berlin-Schöneberg.


Exhibitions (Selection)
1963 Berlin, Rathaus Wilmersdorf (Gr)
1964 Berlin, Galerie Großgörschen 35 (with Ed Dickmann)
1966 Berlin, Galerie Ursula Körber
1971 Berlin, Berlin Art Circle (Gr)
1973 Berlin, Berlin Art Circle
1974 Reinbek b. Hamburg, Galerie Bi; Viersen, Kulturamt; Berlin, Galerie Taube, Ausst. 16
1975 Oldenburg, Kunstverein; Berlin, Galerie im Parlament (opening exhibition Rathaus Schöneberg)
1977 Berlin, Galerie Taube (exhibition 35)
1978 Bonn, Innenministerium (ministery of interior); Glinde, bei Hamburg, Schulzentrum (School-Center)
1980 Köln, Allianz Versicherung (Assurance) (Gr); Viersen, Galerie Taube
1982 Hamburg, Büchergilde Gutenberg; Berlin, Galerie Café Müller & Schultze; Berlin, Galerie Taube (Exhibition 63)
1983 Bad Oldesloe, Stormarnhaus
1983 Reinbek bei Hamburg, Rathaus (Town hall); Berlin Reinickendorf, Galerie im Fontanehaus; Berlin, Galerie Taube (Exhibition 77)
1984 Berlin, FU Bibliothek (Library); Berlin, Konsistorium
1985 Berlin, Galerie am Havelufer; Bonn, Bundestag (Gr); München, Galerie Zwischenraum (Gr)
1986 Berlin, Galerie Taube (Exhibition 88); Berlin, Magasin Provencal; Berlin, Galerieladen am Jungfernstieg; Meldorf, Gelehrtenschule
1987 Berlin, Galerie Oberlicht (Gr)
1988 Berlin, Galerie Büsch; Berlin, Foyer der Silaskirche in Schöneberg; Berlin, VBK (Gr); Memmingen, Verlag Visel (Gr)
1989 Berlin, Galerie Oberlicht; Mölln, Lauenburgische Akademie; Berlin, Galerie am Jungfernstieg
1990 Quakenbrück, Heimatmuseum; Ahrensburg bei Hamburg, Rathaushalle
1991 Berlin, Galerie am Jungfernstieg; Parchim, Mecklenburg, Stadtmuseum; Berlin, Sportakademie Schöneberg
1992 Berlin, Britzer Garten, K. Foerster Pavillon; Berlin, Kaffeehaus Nulpe (Kreuzberg)
1993 Berlin, Galerie Taube (Ausstellung 134)
1995 Berlin, Parlament (Gr)

1996 Berlin, Kommunale Galerie, Wilmersdorf; Berlin, Galerie Taube; Glinde, Schulzentrum (School Center); Wittenberg, Kulturhaus (Culture House)
1997 Oststeinbeck / Hamburg, Evang. Gemeindehaus; Templin, Graphik-Symposium (Gr); Berlin, Galerie Taube, Dezembersalon (Gr)
1998 Berlin, Galerie am Havelufer; Berlin Mitte, Rotes Rathaus (Gr); Berlin, Galerie Taube, Dezembersalon; Berlin, Galerie Classico (Gr)
1999 Glinde, Gutshaus; Berlin, Galerie Classico (Gr)
2000 Berlin, Galerie Classico, Steglitz (multiple participation); Berlin, Rathaus Zehlendorf (Gr)
2001 Berlin, Galerie Classico (Gr); Berlin, Galerie Taube (Gr), Glinde, FORM-ART, Bürgerhaus (Gr); Berlin, Rezeptabrechnungsstelle
2002 Reinbek b. Hamburg, Rathaus; Glinde, FORM-ART, Bürgerhaus (Gr); Berlin, Galerie Classico (multiple participation); Berlin, Galerie Taube (Gr)
2003 Berlin, Galerie Taube (Gr) Berlin, Schulfarm Scharfenberg (Gr),
2004 Berlin, Galerie Classico (mehrfache Beteiligung); Glinde FORM-ART, Bürgerhaus (Gru); Berlin, Rathaus Schöneberg (studio friend ship Dickman-Franke); Berlin, Galerie Taube (Gr)1993 Berlin, Galerie Taube (Ausstellung 134)

Gr= Group exhibition or participation



Links to Eberhard Franke
Press
http://www.berlinonline.de/berliner-zeitung/archiv/.bin/dump.fcgi/2004/0909/lokales/0136/
http://www.artinfo-international.com/ausstberlin/2004-097.php
Auktionen
http://www.eart.de/eigen/displayartist.cfm?ArtistID=2826
Galleries
http://www.galerie-classico.de/Artists/Eberhard_Franke/hauptteil_eberhard_franke.html
http://www.galerie-taube.de/kuenstler/franke.htm
Museums
http://www.kreuzbergmuseum.de/mu_unter/texte/62124.htm
http://www.smb.spk-berlin.de/smb/de/sammlungen/details.php?objectId=8
Edition Curt Visel
http://www.forumbookart.com/jahr21/pressenk21/presE/edcurtv.html

 
Contact (Information und Sale):
Bernd Sieme, Asbrook 10,, 21509 Glinde, Phone: 040 – 72 97 93 50
 
 

Belziger Strasse (II), Kaltn. col., 1980, 25x40 cm (cold needle, colored)	Gendarmenmarkt, Kaltn. col., 1995, 40x50 cm (cold needle, colored)
Halenseebrücke, Farbrad. v. 3 Platten, 1972, 32x49 cm (Blick v. d. Halenseebr.)	Sportpalast, Kaltn. col., 1973, 35x57 cm (cold needle, colored)