KRAYN, HUGO

KRAYN, HUGO (1885–1919), German painter. He was born in Berlin, where he studied print making and book design. Success came to him early. His health was delicate and, after a long period of overwork, he sought recuperation in Davos, Switzerland, where he painted many landscapes. On his return to Berlin, he received wide recognition. In 1915 he became a member of the Berlin Sezession. He died in the 1919 influenza epidemic. He was a post-impressionist, bordering on expressionism. Much of his work concentrates on rendering, powerfully and unmercifully, the hard life of the industrial workers, and the drab atmosphere of the slums in the German capital. -BIBLIOGRAPHY: K. Schwarz, Hugo Krayn (1919). (Alfred Werner)