The Supplement: Hugo Steiner-Prag

I was unfamiliar with Hugo Steiner-Prag's illustrations for Der Golem, but they instantly evoke those other icons of horror-centric Expressionism - the ever-influential The Cabinet of Dr Caligari (1920) and Murnau's Nosferatu (1922). Steiner-Prag also illustrated the works of Edgar Allan Poe, which you can view here.

"Hugo Steiner-Prag was born Hugo Steiner in Prague (at that time part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire) on December 12, 1880... Upon leaving secondary school, Hugo Steiner joined Jung-Prag, a group of young artists who tended strongly toward mysticism and the occult. He took private art lessons and finally entered the Prager Kunstakademie (Prague Academy of the Arts) in 1897... One of Steiner-Prag's major projects during this time was the illustration of E.T.A. Hoffmann's Die Elixiere des Teufels. The sketches were successfully exhibited in the Buchgewerbemuseum in Leipzig. This cemented Steiner-Prag's reputation as an illustrator and book designer. In 1907 he was offered a position as professor at Leipzig's Königliche Akademie für Graphische Künste und Buchgewerbe (Royal Academy of Graphic Arts and Book Trade). This was followed by a very productive period in which Steiner-Prag illustrated books for well-known publishing houses as well as created stage decorations. He also wrote several articles for newspapers and magazines, and in 1913 he designed his own typeface, the Hugo-Steiner-Prag-Schrift. In 1916, Steiner-Prag created twenty-five lithographs for Gustav Meyrink's novel, Der Golem*, which would become his masterpiece.”

From ligotti.net

* A golem is an artificial animated being in medieval and Jewish folklore.

Go here to view Paul Wegener's 1920 film adaptation.