Two Meissen white figures of `Schneider Wibbel' and a Jester circa 1956 and 1967

each modelled by Alexander Struck, the Chinese tailor seated cross-legged on a square base, his scissors beside him and piece of fabric draped over his knees, holding both hands up to thread a needle, the jester seated on a pile of books with an owl perched on his left shoulder and his right hand resting under his chin, on a shaped base

Alexander Struck (1902-1990) studied at the drawings school of the Meissen manufactory and at the Dresden Academy.  He was active at the Meissen manufactory as a modeler and repairer from about 1918.  From about 1939 he began to create numerous models of animals.  He is, however, above all known for his figures based on characters from fairytales, literature and film, with subjects including `Til Eulenspiegel'  and Baron Münchhausen on the cannon ball. 

In 1950 he designed Schneider Wibbel, based on a character from the comedy by Hans Müller Schlösser (1884-1956), which premiered on 14th July 1913 at the Düsseldorf Theatre.  The play was staged in Dresden for the first time in 1916 when the staring role was played by Erich Ponto.  The comedy was subsequently featured regularly on the program until 1924.  In 1932 the play came to the Meissen City Theatre and was staged as an opera in Berlin in 1938.  In 1939 a film was made, also staring Ponto.  Alexander Struck was presumably inspired by the theatre and film performances shown at Dresden and Meissen and the first sketches for the porcelain model date to the early 1940s.  Clearly based on Erich Ponto, early drawings show the figure of Schneider Wibbel wearing spectacles, although the final version of the figure is without them.