Anton Otto Fischer Biography

It has been said that Fischer is one of the pioneers of the modern German poster.

Maitre Plate 127
"In 1896, the first year of the Jugendstil, or German Art Nouveau style, Otto Fischer produced this striking poster of a man and a woman engrossed in looking at a large print. No setting is indicated, aside from the woman's chair, and the focus is entirely on the print which is turned slightly toward the viewer to reveal the image of two girls in a landscape framed by a tree branch…The poster is an advertisement for a printing house, Wilhelm Hoffmann's Studio for Modern Posters in Dresden. It may have been for that reason that the artist dispensed with the gallery setting so frequent in French posters of people looking at prints, with which he was obviously familiar. The contrast in style between the poster itself and the subordinate image is noteworthy. The former relies on bold colours and flat planes, the latter on more intricate detail Clearly, artists with many diverse styles were encouraged to bring their works to Hoffmann for printing"(Wolfe, 37)

Anton Fischer was an accomplished maritime artist prior to the second World War and was commissioned by the Coast Guard as Artist Laureate during the war.  Fischer was extremely prolific in a variety of subjects but is remembered most for his superb marine paintings. He was known for his technical accuracy, strong, tight compositions, and masterful portrayal of men's emotions. Like many illustrators, Fischer used photographs to check positions, lighting, and the way clothes creased, for his illustrations.

Fischer's civilian career included assignments for top US periodicals, as well as illustrating editions of MOBY DICK and other classic works of sea literature.