as born in Schiele, Harz, Germany. He worked as an apprentice in an artistic form of iron casting at the iron foundry in Mägdesprung between 1881 and 1883; and studied art at the Institute of Royal Arts and Museum (later named College of Fine Arts, or Hochschule für Bildende Künste) in Berlin between 1884 and 1890. In 1890-1896 he participated in a project in Italy, run by Moritz Meurer, collecting plant material for drawing classes. During this period Blossfeldt started systematically documenting plant samples photographically. Some of his photographs appear in Meurer’s publications at the turn of the century. He started teaching at the Institute of Royal Arts and Crafts Museum in Berlin in 1898, and continued working there as a professor from 1921 until 1930. His first exhibition was held in 1926 at the Nierendorf Gallery in Berlin; and published the book Urformen der Kunst in 1928, which was highly appreciated by both critics and public. Blossfeldt died in a Berlin hospital in 1932 of a scrotal tumor that spread to parts of his spine and paralysed him. His subjects were plants and living things. He was inspired, as was his father, by nature and the way in which plants grow. As you can see, many handcraft masters of liberty furniture find inspiration from his work.
