Zille moved to Berlin with his family in 1867. He attended school there until 1872. After finishing school, he completed an apprenticeship as a lithographer. At the same time, he took evening courses with Theodor Hosemann at the Royal Art School. In 1874 he finished his art studies. Heinrich Zille worked at the Photographische Gesellschaft in Berlin from 1877. Three years later he did his military service in Frankfurt on the Oder and in Sonneburg until 1872. In 1883 he married the daughter of a teacher, Hulda Frieske. This union resulted in a total of three children. Zille makes photographs and drawings. From that year he started taking photography. He also roamed the streets of Berlin, visited folk festivals or worked as a studio photographer. He mainly used the recording as a template for his chalk and charcoal drawings.

In 1901, Heinrich Zille took part in the exhibition of the Berlin artists' association "Secession". His drawings appeared in various magazines such as "Simplicissimus", "The Funny Leaves" and "Die Jugend". In 1903 he joined the "Berlin Secession" and became a member. In 1907 Zille was dismissed from the Photographic Society. Zille decided to live as a freelance artist. In 1908 his illustrated book entitled "Children of the Street" and other works were published. In it he mainly sketches the life of the lower middle class society in the big city. Zille himself came from a poor family. The drawings consist of scenes from the street, the backyards and living conditions in contemporary Berlin, the German capital. Zille expresses a satirical perspective in his works, which he embodies with a lot of humor.

His works were often understood as socio-political social criticism, which was not originally the intention of the keen observer and big city illustrator. Zille commented on the drawings with short, succinct captions in Berlin slang. The artist became widely known for his drawings. The value of his photographic work was only recognized after his death. After some artists split off from the Berlin Secession and founded the Free Secession, Zille became a member of the board of the new group in 1913. In the same year, his illustrated book "Mein Milljöh" and the works "Hurentalke" and "Berliner Luft" were published. In 1919 his wife died. In 1924, following the intervention of Max Liebermann, Zille became a member of the Prussian Academy of Arts.

In the same year Zille was awarded the title of professor. In 1925 his cycle entitled "Come, Karlineken, come" was published. In 1928, on the occasion of his 70th birthday, the retrospective entitled "Zille's Career" took place in the Märkisches Museum.

Heinrich Zille died on August 9, 1929 in Berlin-Charlottenburg.

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Heinrich Zille

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