Background
He was the only son of sculptor Albert Wolff of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. His training was completed in his father"s studio. In 1880, his figure group "Theseus Finden die Waffen Seines Vaters" (Theseus Finding His Father"s Weapons) brought him a scholarship to Paris.
Education
From 1871 to 1875, he studied at the Prussian Academy of Art under Eduard Daege, followed by study trips to Vienna and Italy.
Career
From 1882 to 1883, he was in Rome and established his own studio upon returning to Berlin. The late 1890s proved to a be hard time for artists and his financial distress was relieved only when he was given a commission to work on the Kaiser"s Siegesallee (Victory Avenue) project, possibly based on his father"s reputation. Although he became very successful afterward, he never grew beyond the Academic style taught to him by his father.