Klaus Jahn Sold at Auction Prices

b. 1942 -

Klaus Jahn was born April 8th 1942 in Vienna, Austria. He is an Austrian printmaker, draftsman and sculptor. Since his apprenticeship he is fascinated by graphic reproduction. Motivated by the woodwork from Canadian Indian from the northwest Coast, he started to work on his wooden-sculptors’.

Klaus Jahn

Klaus Jahn was born April 8th 1942 in Vienna, Austria. His father Leopold Jahn was a painter, photographer and art teacher, his mother Elfriede was a hand craft teacher. His parents knew many artists at that time and were leading an “open house”. Therefore Jahn came in contact with art work quite early. He spent his childhood in Easttyrol – this might be the reason, why he was fascinated by mountains and landscapes. In the age of 9 he was 4 years at the Vienna Boys' Choir “Wiener Sängerknabe” and travelled with his choir through Europe and the USA.



Leaving school he was trained as a lithograph, which he finished with very good results in 1959. He made many ambitious and challenging works for the museum of Vienna and the Vienna city library, where he worked on reproduction “Facsimile” editions of several handwritings. Jahn enlisted into the “Angewandte” in Vienna (today: Universität für angewandte Kunst Wien) and studied under Prof. Carl Unger.

1962 as a free commercial artist “Graphiker” he worked for advertisement, film and television. Until his retirement he worked as film- and video technician for the Austrian Television (ORF).

His art was after all always a part of his life. Jahn was drawing for many years with Indian ink in black and white, predominant landscapes and mountains. Together with his father he once again started etching and engraving and from that time on he worked intensive with high pressure and gravure printings. Jahn said that actually since the time of his apprenticeship he is bound by the possibilities of graphic reproduction.

Travelling to Canada he was motivated by the woodwork of Canadian Indian from the northwest Coast and started to work his wooden-sculptors’. But he is not only working with wood, but his sculptures are also made out of bronze, iron and aluminium. Jahn also builds music instrument, like monochords, hurdy-gurdy and folk fiddles.

He travelled throughout Europe, the Balkan, the Orient, America, Asia and especially the Himalayan countries Tibet and Ladakh, and also Mongolia. This all had big influence in his art work.

Prof. Evelyn Kain, from the Art Department of the Ripon College said:

“Jahn is especially fascinated by the artistic possibilities of the traditionally black and white graphic media; drawing, engraving, etching and woodcut. He sees the absence of colour as an advantage, as the gap into which the imagination of the viewer can leap. His subjects include the picturesque farmlands and villages of Burgenland, the sequestered cloisters of Mount Athos, the expansive landscape and exotic architecture of Turkey. However, like Rembrandt, who is obviously a major source of inspiration for the artist, Jahn does not make images which are literal descriptions of places; his drawings are meditative and mystical transformations of states of mind which allow the viewer to participate on a cosmic and universal level. Far from restricting itself to the pedestrian world of the tourist snapshot, Jahn´s graphic work carries the viewer to larger and deeper realms of human experience. The artist’s control over his media is superb; the viewer becomes quickly engrossed in the rich variety of marks and textures which ranges from the richest black to the most delicate of lines. On an intimate scale and highly sensitive Jahn´s work is a feast for the eye, the heart, and the soul.”

Klaus Jahn had exhibitions in Austria, USA and Japan.

He was leading a workshop in the different forms of graphic reproduction in the University of Ripon, Wisconsin.

Klaus Jahn is married, has three children and lives and works in Vienna and Karl, Burgenland, Austria.