Rudolf Wilke

Who was Rudolf Wilke?

Rudolf Wilke was a German caricaturist and illustrator known for his work for the journal Simplicissimus, to which he was invited to contribute by Albert Langen. Before working for Simplicissimus, he had studied fine art at Munich and Paris and had set up a studio with Bruno Paul. He had also contributed regularly to Die Jugend before he was recruited by Langen.

In 1904 Wilke traveled to Marseilles, Algiers, Tunis, Naples and Rome in company with fellow artists Eduard Thöny and Ludwig Thoma.

In 1906 Wilke, along with Olaf Gulbransson, Thoma, and Thöny, persuaded Langen to convert Simplicissimus into a joint stock company, thereby giving more power to the staff to control the journal's direction.