Biography.guide
Home › People › Artist › Viktor Orth
Portrait of Viktor Orth

Viktor Orth

1853 – 1919

German Art brut artist

Don't just read it — keep itBiographies to ownE-book · Audio · Video From $7 →

About Viktor Orth

Lived 1853 – 1919 (aged 65–66). Viktor Orth was a German artist.

Viktor Orth (1853–1919) was a schizophrenic outsider artist and one of the "schizophrenic masters" profiled by Hans Prinzhorn in his field-defining work Artistry of the Mentally Ill. A naval cadet in his youth, Orth was plagued by a paranoia of being poisoned as early as 1878, and in 1880 saw fit to flee his ship and attempt suicide while on a train. From 1883 until his death he would be hospitalized. He believed himself at different times the King of United Kingdom, the King of Saxony, the Duke of Luxembourg, and the King of Poland.

Although the hospital staff had a difficult time getting Orth to do things like eat and clean, he painted compulsively starting in 1900, using plant juices when without paint and painting on walls when they were the only available surface. Although he evidently displayed great concern for pictorial unity, often to the detriment of accurate representation, his individual brushstrokes are messy and disorganized, without the precision that characterizes many schizophrenic works.

Resources

Prinzhorn, Hans. Artistry of the mentally ill: a contribution to the psychology and psychopathology of configuration. Trans. Eric von Brockdorff. New York, NY: Springer-Verlag, 1972. .

Biography shop

Don’t just read it —
keep it.

Full-length biographies made to live with: read them, listen on the way to work, watch them tonight.

  • E-book
  • Audio
  • Video
Browse the shop — from $7

Instant download · yours to keep · every purchase keeps this site free

Important facts

Born
1853
Birth century
Died
1919, Gehlsdorf
Occupation

People in Viktor Orth's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Viktor Orth's

Frequently asked questions

Who was Viktor Orth?

German Art brut artist

When was Viktor Orth born?

Viktor Orth was born in 1853.

When did Viktor Orth die?

Viktor Orth died in 1919 in Gehlsdorf.

What was Viktor Orth's occupation?

Viktor Orth was an artist.

What nationality was Viktor Orth?

Viktor Orth was German.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Viktor Orth

· Wikidata: Q7929790

· DBpedia: Viktor Orth

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Viktor Orth. https://biography.guide/viktor-orth/

MLA: "Viktor Orth." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/viktor-orth/.

Chicago: "Viktor Orth." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/viktor-orth/.

Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.

Page generated 2026-09-27 05:10 UTC