Karl Hubbuch was born in Karlsruhe on November 21, 1891. He studied at the art academy in Karlsruhe and continued his training in graphic art in Berlin, where his circle included Rudolf Schlichter, Georg Scholz and George Grosz. After military service during the First World War, he returned to Karlsruhe and completed his studies.

A painter, printmaker and draftsman, Hubbuch became a leading representative of the critical, verist current within Neue Sachlichkeit. His sharply observed portraits and scenes of modern life scrutinized the social tensions of the Weimar Republic. He participated in the landmark Neue Sachlichkeit exhibition in Mannheim in 1925 and was appointed professor at the Karlsruhe academy in 1928.

The National Socialist government dismissed Hubbuch from his teaching position in 1933. He supported himself through decorative and commercial work until he was reinstated at the academy after the Second World War, teaching there until 1957. His later work included subjects inspired by travel, especially in France. Hubbuch died in Karlsruhe on December 26, 1979.