Werner Mantz
1901–1983

WERNER MANTZ
Brücke in Köln, 1928
© Werner Mantz / Nederlands Fotomuseum / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2018 / Courtesy Kicken Berlin
Biography
Werner Mantz’s (German, 1901–1983) youthful passion for taking pictures inspired him to study photography at the Bayerische Lehr-und Versuchsanstalt in Munich in 1920–21. After that he opened a portrait photography studio in Cologne and joined the artists group Kölner Progressive. Around 1926, encouraged by architect Wilhelm Ripahn, Mantz became one of the leading contemporary photographers of modern architecture in the Rhineland. He worked for architects such as Bruno Paul and Hans Schumacher and was under exclusive contract with the architects Ripahn & Grod. In 1932 he relocated to Maastricht in the Netherlands close to the German border. He opened a second studio there and closed the Cologne studio in 1938. In addition to his architectural work he devoted himself to photographing children.
Exhibitions
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50 YEARS | 50 PHOTOGRAPHSselected by Wilhelm SchürmannApr 26, 2024 — Mar 28, 2025
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Mixed Media (III)About Architecture. Joachim Brohm in DialogSep 19, 2017 — Feb 02, 2018
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1974… 40 Years. 40 PhotographsSep 20, 2014 — Feb 26, 2015
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Werner MantzArchitektur-Photographie Köln 1928/29Jan 14 — Feb 18, 1989
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Werner MantzPhotographien 1928 - 1933Apr 24 — May 19, 1982
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Werner MantzOct 01 — Nov 30, 1976
Publications
Newsletters
Press
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Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung: Mahlstrom der Bilder
Nov 11, 2017
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Le Figaro: Paris Photo, l'aboratoire d'images
Nov 10, 2017
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Photonews: Das Wunder der Individualität
Sep 01, 2014
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Frankfurter Rundschau: Als die Fotografie scharf wurde
Jul 09, 2014
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Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung: Museum im Glück
Aug 26, 2013
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Berliner Zeitung: Gar nicht ARTig
Jun 06, 2010
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Fotografie Newsletter: Der Galerist Rudolf Kicken im Gespräch
Jan 01, 2002
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Aachener Nachrichten: Der fotografierte Schatten
Jul 04, 1991