As the son of a wine merchant, Philipp Erlanger was meant to become a merchant. However, at the age of 17 he already started an art education in his native city, after which he continued his studies at the academy in Munich. Here he was taught by Heinrich Johann von Zügel, a well-known animal painter who had a decisive influence on Erlanger's (impressionist) style and choice of subject. Philipp Erlanger specialized in portraying animals, as a painter and as a sculptor. The artist made study trips to Switzerland, Italy and France, and after his studies lived successively in Breslau (until 1914) and Braunschweich.