Hildegard Eichwede: Hamburg Uhlenhorst Gaswerke

Hildegard Eichwede 
(prob. b. Hannover ar.1880 ? - ?) 

(painter,  printmaker)

"Hamburg Barmbek  

Uhlenhorst Gaswerke"

Hildegard Eichwede (Barmbek Gaswerke in Hamburg) 

This print is being offered in the respected Frankfurt Gallerie Joseph Fach, known for its remarkable collection of very fine prints. The price of € 1250 is suggesting it is of extreme quality and/or importance, which it possibly is. It came to my knowledge some time ago and I tried to find out more about this print + the artist. Would I have it to my collection of German women printmakers ? Yes of course. But I'm not a masochist believing it ever will, just cannot afford. I suggest this print should be in the collections of the Hamburgs Kunsthalle. Unobtainable as it may be the most interesting part for me and my research is the artist being completely unknown. She is not known by any other work nor is there any biographic link to be found. Sadly Hildegard has not left a clue or a date on her print. The Barmbek Gaswerke were in function from the 1870's until the 1960's.  I suggest it was created around 1910.   

It reminded me technically (probably by the use of mainly gray and the similar  perspective, and probably because it was created by an artist related with Hamburg) of Agnes Salomon's Brussels Boulevard Vaugirard print (see posting here* ) or follow the label attached to this posting. For a long time Agnes graphic history consisted of just one print, untill my research disclosed a second one. Agnes probably gave up her artistic career after marriage and dedicated her life to motherhood. Could this hint at a shared faith (motherhood), could their prints point to at a mutual teacher ? And who would/could that possibly be ?. We know Agnes attended Munich graphic classes and also went to Paris and although I have a suggestion I will keep the name for later or to the serious researcher who may stumble over this posting and offers to help to identify Hildegard Eichwede.     

Agnes Salomon: Boulevard Vaugirard.

Besides, we peddled the Barmbek canal that is joined to the Alster basin visiting our son Paul and his Anne Maartje who are living and working nearby in this great city. Today hardly anything is reminding of this site once so important to the people and industries of Hamburg. The whole area is turned into very green and pleasant to live in communities.   

Hildegard Eichwede no doubt will prove to be a member of the Eichwede family from Hannover. Descending from the co-founder and later owners of the famous Bernstorff & Eichwede "Hoffbronze-giesserei" which existed until 1873 before it was taken over: Friedrich Wilhelm Eichwede (sometimes mentioned Ferdinand) (1791-1822) who was born in Berlin but married the daughter of Hannover Johann Friedrich Bernstorff (1766-1809) the original founding father, and started the Hannover Eichwede dynasty. 

I tried to tie Hildegard to this family but so far I did not succeed. Here's what I did find out in a nutshell. Hopefully a reader (who now must pass the despicable Google Warning System for which I feel deeply embarrassed and offer my sincere apologies)  will come to aid. 

Friedrich was succeeded as director by his son Wilhelm Christian Eduard Eichwede (1818-1890) but with him the connection to the next generation  of Hannover family members came to a halt. I did not find the name of his wife, nor of any brothers or sisters. 

He is probably the father of more then one son because from the mid 1800's  a Heinrich, Eduard and Ernst Eichwede all from Hannover can be found holding several industrial patents.

The most promising link might be to the family of Hannover architect Christian Hubert Julius Eichwede (1853-1936) who was the father of an important but short lived Hannover architect Ferdinand Eichwede (1878-1909) who was the father of concert pianist Ingrid Eichwede (b. 1905) married to Jewish composer Hans Heller (captured, and later killed, in Paris 1940 by the occupying Germans). After hiding she managed to escape with their son Peter (1929-2002) to America, Peter was also a painter. 

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And then there's the history of artist Gisela Lusser-Sautter (Posen 1914 - after 2009). Read the interview following the link.

In an interview she told of receiving painting lessons from “her mother and her sister Tante Marie Eichwede (Posen 1875-1944) who were both painters". She appeared to be the daughter of Dr. Julius Sautter(b. 1878 - after 1939). Could her mother have been  Hildegard Eichwede ? Dr. Julius Sautter is mentioned as  “Oberlandesgerichtsrat” a judge in the town of Celle (1923-1939) and relieved from his duties because of not being co-operative enough (not a faithful German) with the Nazi regime.  Celle is situated just some 20km. north-east of Hannover. 

In 1948 Gisela married Ir. Robert Lusser (1899-1969) a famous inventor and engineer who lost his first wife in allied bombing of their house that may have been directly aimed at him. See his interesting Wikipedia entry here*

Marie Eichwede (1875-1944) is mentioned as "Malerin" (painter) in Dresslers Kunsthandbuch 1921 living in Hannover and likewise in 1930 but also mentioned as "Kunstgewerblerin" (Arts & Crafts artist). 

All clues and information about "who was and what happened to Hildegard Eichwede" are very much welcomed and will be treated with all respect.

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All pictures borrowed freely from the Internet for friendly, educational andiron commercial use only. 

  

This extraordinary print is for sale at Gallerie Joseph Fach Frankfurt