HERKOMER

herkomer, sir hubert von (1849- ), british painter, was born at waal, in bavaria, and eight years later was brought to england by his father, a wood-carver of great ability. he lived for some time at southampton and in the school of art there began his art training; but in 1866 he entered upon a more serious course of study at the south kensington schools, and in 1869 exhibited for the first time at the royal academy. by his picture, "the last muster," at the academy in 1875, he definitely established his position as an artist of high distinction. he was elected an associate of the academy in 1879, and academician in 1890; an associate of the royal society of painters in water colours in 1893, and a full member in 1894; and in 1885 he was appointed slade professor at oxford. he exhibited a very large number of memorable portraits, figure subjects and landscapes, in oil and water colour; he achieved marked success as a worker in enamel, as an etcher, mezzotint engraver and illustrative draughtsman; and he exercised wide influence upon art education by means of the herkomer school (incorporated), at bushey, which he founded in 1883 and directed gratuitously until 1904, when he retired. it was then voluntarily wound up, and is now conducted privately. two of his pictures, "found" (1885) and "the chapel of the charterhouse" (1889), are in the national gallery of british art. in the year 1907 he received the honorary degree of d.c.l. at oxford, and a knighthood was conferred upon him by the king in addition to the commandership of the royal victorian order with which he was already decorated. see _hubert von herkomer, r.a., a study and a biography_, by a. l. baldry (london, 1901); _professor hubert herkomer, royal academician, his life and work_, by w. l. courtney (london, 1892). herlen (or herlin), fritz, of nordlingen, german artist of the early swabian school, in the 15th century. the date and place of his birth are unknown, but his name is on the roll of the tax-gatherers of ulm in 1449; and in 1467 he was made citizen and town painter at nordlingen, "because of his acquaintance with flemish methods of painting." one of the first of his acknowledged productions is a shrine on one of the altars of the church of rothenburg on the tauber, the wings of which were finished in 1466, with seven scenes from the lives of christ and the virgin mary. in the town-hall of rothenburg is a madonna and st catherine of 1467; and in the choir of nordlingen cathedral a triptych of 1488, representing the "nativity" and "christ amidst the doctors," at the side of a votive madonna attended by st joseph and st margaret as patrons of a family. in each of these works the painter's name certifies the picture, and the manner is truly that of an artist "acquainted with flemish methods." we are not told under whom herlen laboured in the netherlands, but he probably took the same course as schongauer and hans holbein the elder, who studied in the school of van der weyden. his altarpiece at rothenburg contains groups and figures, as well as forms of action and drapery, which seem copied from those of van der weyden's or memlinc's disciples, and the votive madonna of 1488, whilst characterized by similar features, only displays such further changes as may be accounted for by the master's constant later contact with contemporaries in swabia. herlen had none of the genius of schongauer. he failed to acquire the delicacy even of the second-rate men who handed down to matsys the traditions of the 15th century; but his example was certainly favourable to the development of art in swabia. by general consent critics have assigned to him a large altar-piece, with scenes from the gospels and figures of st florian and st floriana, and a crucifixion, the principal figure of which is carved in high relief on the surface of a large panel in the church of dinkelsbuhl. a crucifixion, with eight scenes from the new testament, is shown as his in the cathedral, a "christ in judgment, with mary and john," and the "resurrection of souls" in the town-hall of nordlingen. a small epiphany, once in the convent of the minorites of ulm, is in the holzschuher collection at augsburg, a madonna and circumcision in the national museum at munich. herlen's epitaph, preserved by rathgeber, states that he died on the 12th of october 1491, and was buried at nordlingen.