Carl Hentschel (27 March 1864 – 9 January 1930) was a British artist, photographer, printmaker, inventor and businessperson.
[1][4] The speed of some of Hentschel's own early work was unusual; in 1900 he said "when I succeeded in turning out a block in twenty-four hours, it was specially noticed in the Press".
[4] He also describes the length of time allowed for some projects: "I can call to mind in 1879 having some very difficult old engravings to reproduce; they were for a book on Marie Antoinette, by Lord Ronald Gower, and it took the best part of a year to do what now could be done in a week".
[8] The critic Nick Frankel has referred to "the triangle of friendship and collaboration between Hentschel, Wilde and Beardsley".
[10] He has been described as "revolutionising the means of newspaper illustration" and "having done more than any one else in England to perfect line-block technology".
[12] In 1915, during the First World War, it was reported that the firm had lost business because people had assumed from its name that it was a German company.
Young Carl and his father, locking the back kitchen door, and drawing down the blind, would stir their crucibles far on into the night.
Carl worked the business up into a big concern; and we thought he was going to end as Lord Mayor.
But his trade rivals had got their chance, and took it.Hentschel himself said of the trips which became Three Men in a Boat, Jerome at that time was in a solicitor’s office in Cecil Street, where the Hotel Cecil now stands, George Wingrave was a junior clerk in a bank in the City, and I was working in a top studio in Windmill Street, close to where the Lyric Theatre now stands, having to look after a lot of Communists, who had had to leave Paris.
[17] Hentschel's Times obituary reports that "He married, in 1889, Bertha, a daughter of Mr. David Posener, and he used to say that this was the cleverest thing he ever did, for her help and sympathy alone enabled him to come through his early struggles.
[18][19][20] The newspaper editor GB Burgin described him as "the indefatigable Carl Hentschel ... possessed of more persuasive and pervasive dynamic force than any man I have ever met".
[1] He campaigned for issues including ceasing the practice that aldermen were elected for life, and limiting speeches.
[1] His public roles included Chair of the Guildhall School of Music and President of the City of London's Tradesmens' Club.