Franz Eichhorst

{{Short description|20th century German painter (1885–1948)}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2024}}

File:Ei13 FRANZ EICHHORST 1885–1948 war painter Rathaus Berlin-Schöneberg Bürgersaal fresco 1935–38 Nazi propaganda Artist working Galleria.thule-italia.com No known copyright restrictions.jpg in Berlin, 1935–1938. The Nazi propaganda murals were painted over at the end of World War II.
Photo: Dorneth, 1936[https://www.bild.bundesarchiv.de/dba/de/search/?topicid=dcx-thes_klassifikation_774uccp24ojo4xuriah Photo in the Bundesarchiv]]]

Franz Eichhorst (Berlin 7 September 1885 – 30 April 1948 Innsbruck) was a German painter, engraver and illustrator, one of a number of German artists known for his war paintings supporting the Nazi regime.McCloskey, Barbara. [https://books.google.com/books?id=HmSHCUsvCxcC&q=Eichhorst&pg=PA50 Artists of World War II], p. 50 (2005) ({{ISBN|978-0313321535}}) ("Paintings and drawings by Elk Eber, Fritz Erler, Franz Eichhorst, Wolf Willrich, Rudolf Hengstenberg, and other soldier-artists instead glorified Germany's war effort ...")

Eichhorst volunteered for military service for Germany in World War I.Ernst Klee: Das Kulturlexikon zum Dritten Reich. Wer war was vor und nach 1945 (in German). S. Fischer, Frankfurt am Main 2007, p. 131. In the early 1920s, Eichhorst set up a summer studio in Matrei in Osttirol. There in 1928, he created one of his most well-known works, Mädchen mit Krug (Girl with Pitcher).{{Cite journal|date=January 1940|title=Bildbeilage: Mädchen mit Krug / Von Franz Eichhorst|journal=Berlin Rom Tokio|volume=2|issue=1}}

In 1938 he created a series of war and Nazi propaganda murals representing the last 25 years of German history for the Schöneberg city hall in Berlin;Brett-Smith, Richard. [https://books.google.com/books?id=KhA8AAAAMAAJ&q=%22Franz+Eichhorst%22+rathaus Berlin '45: The Grey City], p.135 (Macmillan 1966) ("the murals of the leading Nazi war artist, Franz Eichhorst, to be found formerly in the Rauthaus Berlin-Schoneberg") these were repainted and deleted at the end of World War II in May 1945. In April 1938, Adolf Hitler bestowed upon him the honorary title of Professor. Over 50 of his paintings were displayed at the Great German art exhibition (Große Deutsche Kunstausstellung) at the then Haus der deutschen Kunst in Munich, including battle scenes from the Second World War, particularly those from the conflicts with Poland and Russia.

File:Franz Eichhorst (German, 1885-1948) Lathe workers Signed 'Franz Eichhorst' Oil on paper 59 x 70cm. Auction house Bonhams London 2009. No known copyright restrictions.jpg|"Lathe workers". Oil on paper, 59 x 70 cm.

File:Eichhorst, F - Polenkämpfer, 1940.jpg|"Poland fighter", propaganda painting of a Wehrmacht soldier, 1940