HANS HASENPFLUG
1907-1977
Hans
Wilhelm Hasenpflug was born in Germany and emigrated to Australia
in 1927. He had trained as a clerk in the German exporting
firm of
Munsterlager, and until 1932 was employed as a clerk or salesman
in similar firms in Sydney.
Hasenpflug
appears to have taken up photography around this time and was working
as a photographer for Leica Photo
Service in 1932.
The
Leica job was probably simply processing work. Hasenpflug began
his professional career in the commercial illustration studio
of Russell
Roberts Pty Ltd. where he worked from 1935 - 37.
Hasenpflug
specialised in figure work, usually fashion and product advertising
as well as
some portraiture. His work began appearing
in Table Talk and The Sydney Morning Herald Women’s Supplement.
By 1938 Hasenpflug had photographs exhibited in the pictorial,
portrait and commercial sections of the mammoth 150th Anniversary
Salon commemorating
the foundation of Australia. His photograph of a child leaning
over a balustrade, in rather soft focus, was praised as “ .
. an outstanding study of light and shade” and an example
of “modern” photography.
Hasenpflug’s fashion work of this time (plate 74, Fashion
Illustration, c.1937) is reminiscent of the work of Munkasci,
a photographer who pioneered
such spontaneous
fashion shots in the 1920s.
By
the time of the 150th Anniversary Salon Hasenpflug was working for
Athol Shmith’s studio
in Melbourne, which specialised in fashion and social portraiture.
He later worked for other commercial
studios,
Austin-Murcott and Ritter-Jeppersen, from 1942 - 45.
Hasenpflug
had to switch to child portraiture during the war years as he was
restricted from doing the industrial
work he
had begun
to develop in the 1940s. Hasenpflug was naturalised at
the close of the
war and established a studio of his own in Drury Lane,
working in commercial illustration. Norman Ikin may have been associated
with this studio.
Hasenpflug later worked for Myer department stores doing
product advertisements before ill health ended his career.
Although
he did not become professionally involved with photography until
his arrival in Australia, Hans Hasenpflug’s work was
closer in style to the New Photography (developed in Germany
around 1927)
than most of the Australian photographers. In particular
the close-up study of the cactus (plate 81) resembles the work of
Albert Renger-Patzsch.
above
text
based on Gaël Newton's Silver & Grey
Angus and Roberston, Australia 1980