Peter Flinsch
Encyclopedia
Peter Flinsch was a German
-Canadian
artist, who worked as a set designer and art director for television programming produced by Radio-Canada
the French language service of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
.
He was born in Leipzig
, Germany, the grandson of German art historian Ulrich Thieme. Flinsch, like many young Germans during the Nazi
era, was obliged to join the Hitler Youth
. At the onset of the Second World War
he decided to fulfill his military obligation and joined the anti-aircraft artillery of the Luftwaffe
. In 1942, after a Christmas party, he was spotted kissing another man and was charged under section 175-1
of the Third Reich's criminal code. He was sentenced to a disciplinary minesweeping unit where being overworked, underfed, and mistreated by fellow convicts he developed malaria
.
At the end of the war in 1945, Flinsch began working as a theatre designer in Leipzig and Berlin and later as a publicity designer for Air France
in Munich
.
He subsequently moved to Vancouver
in 1953, reuniting with his friend and lover Heino Heiden who was then the artistic director and choreographer for the Vancouver Ballet Company. He finally settled in Montreal to work for Radio-Canada, where he worked for over 30 years and won an Anik Award for Best Television Design in 1981 for his work on L'Espion aux yeux verts. Following his retirement from Radio-Canada in 1985, he began to exhibit his own artwork in drawing, painting, and sculpture.
In 1998, one of his friends suggested that he display his art on the Internet
. Initially he resisted the idea. With much persuasion, his web presence was born. Eventually he enjoyed being contacted from complete strangers who were interested in his work, or the story of his life.
His web site also brought him into contact with an old lover from Paris in the 1940s, and a distant relative (see: Flinsch Peak
).
The Body in Question, a biography by Ross Higgins which includes 110 pages of Flinsch's artwork, was published in 2008 by Arsenal Pulp Press
.
He died in Montreal
, Quebec
on March 30, 2010.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
-Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
artist, who worked as a set designer and art director for television programming produced by Radio-Canada
Télévision de Radio-Canada
Télévision de Radio-Canada is a Canadian French language television network. It is owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, known in French as Société Radio-Canada. Headquarters are at Maison Radio-Canada in Montreal, which is also home to the network's flagship station, CBFT-DT...
the French language service of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
.
He was born in Leipzig
Leipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
, Germany, the grandson of German art historian Ulrich Thieme. Flinsch, like many young Germans during the Nazi
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
era, was obliged to join the Hitler Youth
Hitler Youth
The Hitler Youth was a paramilitary organization of the Nazi Party. It existed from 1922 to 1945. The HJ was the second oldest paramilitary Nazi group, founded one year after its adult counterpart, the Sturmabteilung...
. At the onset of the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he decided to fulfill his military obligation and joined the anti-aircraft artillery of the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
. In 1942, after a Christmas party, he was spotted kissing another man and was charged under section 175-1
Paragraph 175
Paragraph 175 was a provision of the German Criminal Code from 15 May 1871 to 10 March 1994. It made homosexual acts between males a crime, and in early revisions the provision also criminalized bestiality. All in all, around 140,000 men were convicted under the law.The statute was amended several...
of the Third Reich's criminal code. He was sentenced to a disciplinary minesweeping unit where being overworked, underfed, and mistreated by fellow convicts he developed malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
.
At the end of the war in 1945, Flinsch began working as a theatre designer in Leipzig and Berlin and later as a publicity designer for Air France
Air France
Air France , stylised as AIRFRANCE, is the French flag carrier headquartered in Tremblay-en-France, , and is one of the world's largest airlines. It is a subsidiary of the Air France-KLM Group and a founding member of the SkyTeam global airline alliance...
in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
.
He subsequently moved to Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
in 1953, reuniting with his friend and lover Heino Heiden who was then the artistic director and choreographer for the Vancouver Ballet Company. He finally settled in Montreal to work for Radio-Canada, where he worked for over 30 years and won an Anik Award for Best Television Design in 1981 for his work on L'Espion aux yeux verts. Following his retirement from Radio-Canada in 1985, he began to exhibit his own artwork in drawing, painting, and sculpture.
In 1998, one of his friends suggested that he display his art on the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
. Initially he resisted the idea. With much persuasion, his web presence was born. Eventually he enjoyed being contacted from complete strangers who were interested in his work, or the story of his life.
His web site also brought him into contact with an old lover from Paris in the 1940s, and a distant relative (see: Flinsch Peak
Flinsch Peak
Flinsch Peak is located in the Lewis Range, Glacier National Park in the U.S. state of Montana. It is west of Rising Wolf Mountain and straddles the Continental Divide. Viewed from Oldman Lake, the summit has a distinctive horn shape. Young Man Lake is immediately east of the peak....
).
The Body in Question, a biography by Ross Higgins which includes 110 pages of Flinsch's artwork, was published in 2008 by Arsenal Pulp Press
Arsenal Pulp Press
Arsenal Pulp Press is a Canadian independent book publishing company, based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The company publishes a broad range of titles in both fiction and non-fiction, and is noted for founding the annual Three-Day Novel Contest .Authors who have been published by Arsenal Pulp ...
.
He died in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
on March 30, 2010.