Kampf studied under Peter Janssen, among others, at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf from 1879 to 1881. After completing his education, he became a professor at the Kunstakademie and taught there until 1889, when he moved to Berlin. There he continued to teach at the local Kunstakademie. From 1915 to 1924 he was president of the Hochschule für Bildende Künste in Berlin. He also became a member of the Prussian Academy of Arts, and gave drawing lessons, notably to Prince August Wilhelm, son of Wilhelm II. Kampf joined the Nazi Party after the Nazisseized power. In 1939's "Great German Art Exhibition" at the Haus der Kunst in Munich, he was represented by numerous works. In 1939 he received the Adlerschild des Deutschen Reiches with the inscription "To the German painter". Celebrated for his themes, largely concerning aspects of German history, he was, on the occasion of his 75th birthday, added to the so-called "List of Immortals". This guaranteed him immunity from interference in artistic work during the Second World War. In 1944, Kampf was one of 24 artists, architects, authors, composers, actors, and singers added to the Gottbegnadeten list, meaning he was considered absolutely indispensable to German culture. In May 1944, Kampf left Berlin and went to the village of Lower Silesia to escape bombings from Allied Forces.. In Lower Slesia, Kampf's wife was killed in a traffic accident. Kampf held membership in the Association of Rhine-Westphalian Artists, the Society of German Watercolorists and the Association of German Illustrators, and he belonged to the Society of Berlin Artists in Berlin. In Düsseldorf, Kampf belonged to the Malkasten Artists‘ Society, the St. Luke’s Artist’s Club, the Society of Düsseldorfer Artists, and to the Free Federation of Düsseldorf Artists. Shortly before his death in 1950, at the age of 85, Kampf published a memoir called Aus Meinem Leben. His older brother, Eugen, was also a well known painter.
Style
Kampf's work is most strongly associated with the genre of traditional history painting though throughout his lifetime, he explored styles influenced by Impressionism and Art Nouveau. He was also celebrated for large scaleportrait work and in particular children's portraiture. Kampf also worked extensively as an illustrator, contributing drawings to volumes by Shakespeare, R. Herzog's History of Prussia and J.W. Goethe, Faust. Kampf's artwork post World War II largely focused on religious themes.
Legacy
Much of Kampf's artwork and personal papers were lost during World War II. Arthur Kampf's association to the Nazi party has stirred 21st century debate. In 2018, the street Arthur-Kampf-Straße in Burtscheid, Aachen came under fire between those questioning Kampf's membership in the party, and those arguing that Kampf's age and the immunity that party membership gave German artists may have played a deciding factor in his joining. Critically reviewing street names, the Department of Geoinformation and Land Planning, supported by the City Archives of Aachen, announced in May, 2020 an initiative to explore details of Kampf's personal life.
