Tin figures enrich me in several ways. First, they give me relaxation and then, the research for accurate painting from the different historical periods of diverse cultures adds to my knowledge of peoples and nations for long vanished. The preparation of the figure before painting is a painstaking and minute task which gives me a good and close look of the figure, and I plan ahead of the approaching painting job. The painting itself is often a challenge because there are so many different aspects of painting technique for the realistic reproduction of horses, cloths, human skins, metals, wood etc. each having its own secret which one must find in order to bring the minute metal figure to life.
Original Indian ink drawing in natural size (30mm) by Ludwig Madlener, engraving by Ludwig Frank, edition Franz Beck. Figure painted in oil.
Jugurtha, Aethiopian slave, dancing girl, Babylonian king, Landsknecht, drawing L. Madlener, edition Gottstein except for slave which is edition Raul Gérard Österreicher (F. C. Neckel).
Niebelungen saga, drawing? edition Rackow; Greeks in olympic games, Greek woman, drawing L. Madlener, edition A. Retter.
Franz Karl Mohr
The last of the Valois, Duke of Condé, drawing L. Bombled; Aethiopian; Assyrian slave merchant, drawing L. Rousselot, edition O. Gottstein. Portrait figures of the court of Louis XIV, Fouquet and Molière; drawing L. Rousselot, edition Mignot.
Mongolian wild horse (Przewalski's horse), drawing Ludwig Madlener, edition Beck (H-G. Scholtz), Old Britain king Cassivellaunus, drawing probably Rousselot, edition O. Gottstein.
Greece, diadoche, edition ? (TM); greeting man from the series "Königin Elizabeth I in Tillbury - 1588" edition Gottstein, drawing? Greece, diadoche, edition? (TM); greeting man from the series "Königin Elizabeth I in Tillbury - 1588" edition Gottstein, drawing Johannes Frauendorf.
Johannes Frauendorf
Sixtus Maier Jr.
The Figure
Ludwig Frank

Engravers


There are but a few engravers I consider as masters.

Ludwig Frank (1870-1957) has produced thousands of engraved figures and much of his work is of pristine quality. His figures are often gracile and his horses depict power and speed.  
Franz Karl Mohr (1896-1970) paid a lot of attention to the character of his figures including conspicuous facial expressions, but unfortunately he was not that good at doing horses.  
Otto Thieme has a coarse and down-to-earth stile, a very strong relief.   
Sixtus Maier Jr. (1907-1968) is a sort of blend of several good engravors.   
Johannes Frauendorf (1889-1972) also has his own distinctive style, being elegant with relatively low relief. His figures are typically slender. He, like several other engravors as e.g. Mohr, made the drawings to his own engravings but also a lot of drawings for other engravors. 

Masters in the making -

Wolfgang Friedrich (1954), has sin own, gracile style. A clear egraving with medium relief, reminding of Frank's style, especially in horses. Vivid and realistic figures.

Vladimir Nuzhdin (1961), a very skillfull and meticulous artist working in many different material. His engravings in slate stone for tin figures, often depicting myhtical figures, are astonishing.


Below are some examples of figures made by my favourite engravers.

Otto Thieme

Artists


During the golden days of the tin figure the original drawings were made in Indian ink in the same size as the figure would be engarved, i.e. 30-mm from eye to foot. Below are some original drawings (enlarged here) made by Ludwig Madlener (1903-1976) from my collection. This artist made thousands upon thousands of drawings for many different editors. Ludwig Madlener's drawings are, as far as I am concerned, small collectable masterpieces of their own right and maybe one of the tin figure world's most accurate and sensitive pattern for the engraving of figures.

Other talented artists involved in the creation of tin figures were Lucien Rousselot (1900-1992), Fritz Krischen (1881-1949), Franz Karl Mohr (1896-1970), Johannes Frauendorf (1889-1972), Louis Charles Bombled (1862-1927) Alexander Wilke (1879-1954) and Ludwig Frank (1870-1957). Sometimes the finished figure reveals the artist behind the drawing, but sometimes it is more uncertain as to which artist drew the original. Thus, the artists stated below are uncertain in some cases.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Germans, drawings L. Madlener, engraved by L. Frank, edition Beck, (H-G. Scholtz).