DR. PAUL WOLFF, Still Life Cooking Preparation (Bowl of Flour, Spilled Flour, Milk Bottle, Eggs and Wooden Spoons), 1930s, 9x6.625" Gelatin silver print, Printed c. 1930s, Photographer's address stamp on print verso, filled with negative number 7724 in pencil; inscriptions in German in red and green pencil.

Still life of cooking in progress, with ingredients, utensils, and a bit of spilled flour to give the picture drama.

Dr. Paul Wolff (1887-1951) was a German photographer and a pioneer in the field of 35mm photography. In 1936, in recognition of his photographic performance as a pioneer of Leica photography, he received the two hundred thousandth Leica from the Ernst Leitz company.

As a twelve-year-old, Wolff was enthusiastic about taking photographs, but after graduating from school he first studied medicine, became an assistant doctor, and in 1914 was called up for military service. After World War I, he was expelled from Strasbourg, which now belonged to France, and moved to Frankfurt am Main.

There, he bought a film camera and began to work for a film company, but soon went into business for himself. He produced films and photographed settlements, before switching from moving images back to still photography. In 1926 he won his first Leica at the International Photo Exhibition in Frankfurt. He improved his technique and soon caused a sensation in the magazines with his vivid 35mm photos. In 1927, he went into business Alfred Tritchler, founding the company Dr. Paul Wolff & Tritschler.

In 1934 he travelled to what was then the Saar region, making gripping images of people, everyday life, landscapes, and industrial plants. In 1936 Wolff and Tritschler photographed the Summer Olympics. In 1944 his house in Frankfurt was destroyed by a bomb attack and large parts of his negatives archive were destroyed; only the outsourced small picture archive remained. He continued to use the Leica until his death.

CREDIT: https://de.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Wolff

Very good. Mild wear.