August Kotzsch (1836–1910) is one of the masters of early photography who is scarcely known today. During his lifetime, he gained international renown primarily for his landscape photographs around Loschwitz near Dresden, now a district of the Saxon capital: views of the town, picturesque landscapes, and staged genre scenes captivated his audience. Kotzsch was one of the early photographers who understood the medium not primarily as a means of reproduction, but as a form of artistic expression. For Kotzsch himself, his studies were artistically valuable, especially his botanical studies against neutral backgrounds, which anticipated the characteristics of New Objectivity photography. To mark the recent publication of a catalog raisonné featuring over 1,000 works, the Deutsche Fotothek organized the exhibition August Kotzsch: Photography, which showcases previously unpublished images and offers insights into the photographer’s practice and distribution. The exhibition is on view at the Leonhardi Museum in Dresden and runs through June 21.
Kotzsch was the only photographer in Loschwitz and the surrounding area, which is why he enjoyed a steady stream of commissions, for example for portrait photography. Starting in the late 1870s, he was also able to make a comfortable living from the popular picture postcards. Among his personal projects was the documentation of his hometown, Loschwitz, a wine-growing village that developed into a villa suburb of Dresden. Originally, Kotzsch wanted to study at an art academy, but his family’s financial means were insufficient. Beginning in 1860, he served as an assistant to his neighbor, the painter and photographer August Niemann. After Niemann’s death in 1861, Kotzsch purchased his photographic equipment and worked as a photographer himself, while managing his family’s vineyard. In the years that followed, Kotzsch’s international reputation grew. He presented his work at venues including the 1873 World’s Fair in Vienna. The Leonhardi Museum hosted an exhibition on August Kotzsch as early as 1986.
