Heinrich Zille

Rudolf Heinrich Zille (Radeburg, 1858 – Berlin, 1929) was a German illustrator and photographer known for his satirical depictions of working-class life in Berlin. In 1867, his family moved to Berlin, where he trained as a lithographer. He married Hulda Frieske in 1883 and had three children; she passed away in 1919. Zille became renowned for his humorous and socially conscious drawings portraying everyday characters from Berlin’s lower classes. Many of his works were published in the German satirical weekly Simplicissimus. Through his art, Zille captured the essence of Berlin’s urban life at the turn of the 20th century with empathy, wit, and a distinctive visual style, earning a lasting place in the canon of German popular art.