Anna Betzler from Frankfurt.

One thing leading to another when investigating is one of the joys "surfing" the Internet. It is a great help placing artists in perspective and context, understanding better their lives and times. 

Betzler-Holtschmidt, Anna 

(Barmen 25-09-1889 – 1936 Frankfurt)
Painter and printmaker. 

Studied in the Dusseldorf painting school “Atelier Kunowski" and in Dusseldorf “Kunstakademie” as Anna Holtschmidt.  In 1915 she married: 

Emil Betzler 

(1892-1974).
Expressionist painter, printmaker and art educator:

Travels to Italy, the Alps and France, presumably together because these two alpine prints are about all the proof I was able to find in the internet concerning the couples printmaking activities. Emil was a friend of Max Beckmann (1884-1950) Germany's best known expressionist painter, sculptor and printmaker who rose to greater fame emigrating to the US in 1947. Beckmann taught in the 1920-30's in Frankfurt "Kunstakademie".  

Perhaps Emil and Anna Betzler are not among the most spectacular or even collectable of printmakers, but seeing how they converted there travel sketches into block prints and knowing something about their times and background is interesting enough. At least to me they are.  

Dresslers KHB 1930: Frankfurt am Main, Escherheim, Klaus Grothstrasse. Member RvbK.

Atelier Kunowski:

a private painting school lead by Lothar von Kunowski and his wife Gertrud von Kunowski-Eberstein active in Düsseldorf since 1909. “Malschule (paintingschool) Gertrud Eberstein” was founded in 1901 in Munich. A year later in 1902, after her marriage with Lothar von Kunowski, it was renamed “Malschule Kunowski”. Works by students were exhibited in Munich, Leipzig and Breslau and a branch was opened in Rome for Munich students. The school was relocated in 1905 to Berlin and in 1909 to Düsseldorf where Gertrud Kunowski lead the “Vorseminar”, a course preparing students for admittance in the Academy. She also lead the portrait painting classes and seminar. Lothar von Kunowsky was awarded a professorship in Düsseldorf “Kunstakademie” in 1925.

Kunowski-Eberstein, Gertrud von 

(Bromberg 24-04-1877 – 1960 Schönau)

Painter and painting school owner.

Self portrait 1897

Discovering Gertrud Kunowski through her student Anna Holtschmidt proved her to be a very interesting artist. She'd studied privately in Breslau from 1893 and with a state grant (“Stipendium”) from 1895 in Munich “Damen-malschule"* meeting her husband Lothar von Kunowski (1866-1936) who was a teacher in the school.

* Painting school for girls and women: women were not allowed to study in the academy until 1919.

Self portraits by Gertrud von Kunowsky.

She founded her own private painting school in 1901(!) which says something about her nature and was joined a year later by her husband who was appointed head of Düsseldorf state art-teachers seminar in 1909. She was a well-known local Jugendstil portrait painter leading the portrait classes in their school. Her work was exhibited in 1919 in Düsseldorf modernist “Galerie Flechtheim”. In the internet I found several self portraits. 

In 1953, when she was 76, she portraits Hermann Buhl (1924-1957) the famous Austrian mountaineer who in that year was the first climber conquering solo 8000 meter Nanga Parbat in Pakistan Himalaya. In the 60 year before numerous attempts had been made, killing 35 climbers.    

Galerie Flechtheim:

Alfred Flectheim by Nils Dardel (1888-1943)

The Modernist art gallery was founded in 1913 by Alfred Flechtheim (Münster 1878-1937 London) at Dusseldorf's posh "Königsallee" 34. He was the heir of his fathers international merchants and grain business and had married the extremely wealthy Bertha Goldschmidt (1881-1941) from one of Dortmund wealthiest Jewish families. Alfred Flechtheim, besides leading his fathers business, was an international art dealer, art collector, publicist and gallery owner. He owned works by Picasso, van Gogh, Derain, Braque and many others. Many paintings bought with his wifes money on their honeymoon trip to Paris. Not the amusement of his father in law Salomon Goldschmidt. 

After WWI the gallery re-opened with an expressionist exhibition (see above) in 1919. Branch galleries opened in Berlin, Lützowufer 13, in 1921, in Cologne and Frankfurt. He fled the Nazi persecution in 1933 through Switzerland and Paris reaching London in 1934. His  art dealers and galleries businesses, the  collections and both their fortunes were either sold, stolen or confiscated by the Nazis. He died impoverished in 1937 in London. His widow Betty committed suicide 15-11-1941 in Berlin the day before her scheduled deportation.

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All pictures embiggen by mous-click.

All pictures borrowed freely from the Internet for friendly, educational and non-commercial use only.            

Schütz, not identified printmaker.

Unknown German printmaker. 

Some months ago these block prints (linoleum ?) showed up in Ebay and before being sold I archived the photographs. Maybe showing them together wil help reveal the identity of the maker. Someday. 

And there's this nice print that was shown in a Swiss exhibition last winter by a unknown maker: Hans Schütz. 

All help is welcomed. 

Pictures borrowed freely from the Internet for friendly, educational and  non commercial use only

Doramaria Purschian

Recently my attention was pointed to and was asked by a reader of the blog to pay attention to Doramaria Purschian, a painter and graphically active woman artist. She had not come to my attention but I agree, she should be in my index. So far I was only able to find one example of her graphic work, an etching. 

Purschian, Doramaria (Ella Margaretha Maria Dora) 

Berlin 06-07-1890 – 11-07-1972 Berlin

Painter, portrait painter and graphic artist. 

She was the daughter of engineer Ernst Purschian and his wife Gabriela, studied 1907-1909 at Berlin “Königliche Kunstschule in the "Zeichenlehrer-seminar” graduating as a teacher at drawing in 1909. She was one of the first women to graduate from an official institution in Germany, at the time very controversial: Berlin “Staatliche Kunstakademie” not accepted female students until 1919. 

Castle (Schloß) Eutin (between Kiel and Lübeck). 

She continued her studies in 1912 with Fritz Bürger (1867-1927) and Lovis Corinth (1858-1925). Her first and very successful solo exhibition was held in 1918 in the Roemer- und Pelizaeus Museum in Hildesheim. She worked as a Red-Cross nurse in WWI 1914-1918 and afterwards as a free creating artist until 1930 and well known portrait painter. After her brother Frank died in 1939 she lead the heating company established by her father. Described as “gute Portraitistin und Kindermaler” (good portrait and children painter) in the (Nazi) “Reichskammer für bildende Künste (Leistungsgruppe B)”.

After WWII she received a "Mention Speciale" during the 1969 New York "2^nd Exhibition of European Painters in the U.S.A.” and an honorary membership in Rome’s Art Academy.

Member of the VdBK 1928/29-1961 and member of the "Darlehns- und Unterstützungsdasse  since 1946. Exhibited with the VdBK 1928/29, 1929, 1934, 1937, 1942, 1954.Member of the VdBK 1929-1961 and since 1946 of the “Berufsverband Bildender Künstler Berlins”. In 1949 she was the victim of a brutal robbery and became severely injured never recovering completely. She is buried in the old part of Berlin-Lichterfelde “Parkfriedhof” cemetery.

Dresslers KHB 1930: Berlin Dahlem, Humboldstraße 19, Member RvBK, VdK.

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Her teacher 

Fritz Bürger (Munich 16-07-1867 – 1927 Lindau) 

Painter, lithographer and well known portrait painter. 

Studied at Munich “Kunstakademie” 1883-1888, at the “Ecole des Beaux-Arts” 1891-1897 and at the “Académie Julian” in Paris 1893-1896. Awarded many awards gold and silver medals 1897-1909. Settled 1899-1905 in Basel and then moved to Berlin where he became a professor in the “Kunstakademie” moving to a villa near Berlin 1910.

Exhibited from 1895 in the Munich Secession and at the “Großen Berliner und Dresdner Kunstaustellungen” and was awarded many silver and gold medals. He was a celebrated portrait artist painting many of his contemporaries and was highly praised for his children portraits. Bürger is from Swiss descent. Besides his portraits he known from a series of 1898 lithographs: "Frauentypen vom Münchner  Künstlerfest". 

  

He married sculptor, painter and arts and crafts artist Sophie Hartmann (Munich 23-05-1868 – 1940 Munich), selftaught but also studying 1884-1887 at Munich “Königliche  Kunstgewerbe-schule” at the “Damen-akademie des Münchners Künstlerinnenverein” and at the “Académie Julian” in Paris where she met her husband.

Bronze pen holder  

Like her husband she was an international award winning artist 1900-1907. After a stay in Dürnbach they moved to Lindau in 1922 and after the death of Fritz Bürger she moved back to Munich. 

Dresslers KHB 1921: Dürnbach near Gmund at Tegernsee (Bavaria). Member VBK, VSMBA, BasKG, MS, ADK.   

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

Elise Daimler, Stuttgart painter and printmaker.

Elise Daimler
(Stuttgart June 13th 1875-1956 Stuttgart)

German painter and printmaker. 

Dresslers Kunsthandbuch 1930: M.: Ge. (“Malerin, Gewerblerin”, painter and arts and crafts artist), Reinsburgerstrasse 10. 
Note: Gottlieb Daimler (Däumler) (1834-1900) automobile pioneer and founding father of the Daimler-Benz (Mercedes) Motor Company originated from the nearby village of Schorndorf. There may be a (although not direct) family relation, Gottlieb had three brothers: Johannes (1832), Karl-Wilhelm (1840), and Christian-Albert (1845). 
She was a contemporary to Stuttgart  painter Helene Wagner (1878-1956).

I was pleasantly surprised recently finding a woodblock print "Föhren" (Sea pines) in a local car boot created by a German woman printmaker who was completely new to me. So here's what I was able to find out researching a bit. 

She studied in Stuttgart “Kunstakademie” with Christian Landenberger (1682-1927) and also in Munich (probably also with Landenberger who taught in both academies) and Paris. So far this is all I was able to find out besides a handful of pictures of paintings from auction sites. (South German) Landscapes, a still-life, a nude etc. 

The most interesting painting, to me, by Elise Daimler is this 1912 painting showing the Dutch village of “Bergen aan Zee”. 

Following the year (1912) on the painting I'm convinced she was in the company of her teacher Landenberger (and/or his class) visiting the Dutch coast. It is recorded Landenberger travelled to the Dutch coast that same year. Their company, traveling from Amsterdam no doubt, will have embarked at this platform in Bergen.  

And probably stayed in Hotel "Prins Maurits", the first Hotel to be build in Bergen.

Although much has changed there will be little difference in the enjoyment of Bergen beach life in summer, today or a century ago. This painting by contemporary artist Hans Versfelt (b.1968) shows the path from the Dunes. Nothing much has changed there over a 100 years.  
  

Elise's teacher Landenberger is an interesting figure (see his short biography below), an impressionist painter, professor in Stuttgart Academy and an advocate of "plein-air" painting ("Freilicht-malerei", outdoor painting). He'd become quite known in his time, awarded and famous for his many paintings of bathing nude boys. 

The "Badende Knaben" theme probably "invented" by Max Liebermann (1847-1934) a decade or two before. Liebermann was a frequent visitor of the Dutch North Sea coast and came often from Berlin to paint. Like his colleague Lovis Corinth (1858-1925) and many others 

And from the "Sammlung Elise Daimler" (probably from her personal estate) comes this "Pierette" by Stuttgart fellow artist Clara Rettich (1860-1927). The intriguing look in the eyes of the beautiful sitter (is it a portrait of Elise ?) is astonishing. And what its the meaning of the clowns costume ? Leaving the painting untitled, undated and unsigned is puzzling and maybe suggesting a very close personal link. To my knowledge both women never married. 

Clara Rettich proved also to be an interesting yet obscured artist. Born in New-York she studied and lived in Stuttgart (I have no idea why she chose Stuttgart and not Munich, Paris or Berlin). She was asked by antroposophist Rudolf Steiner to paint some of his esoterical designs  (the s.c. "apocalyptic seals") in oil.  And she is known to have worked in needle-work also. 

If you happen to stumble over this posting: please send me further biographical, artistical and genealogical (Stuttgart/Schorndorf Daimler family)  

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Christian Adam Landenberger 

(Ebingen 07-04-1862 – 13-02-1927 Stuttgart)

(self-portrait)

Impressionist painter and professor, who was appointed in 1905 in Stuttgart “Kunstakademie” after  a  gold award winning "Badende Buben" (nude bathing boys). Studied from 1879 at Stuttgart “Kunstschule” with Jacob Grünenwald (1821-1896) and Carl von Häberlin (1832-1911) and in Munich “Kunstakademie” 1883-1887 with Frans (von) Defregger (1835-1921). Founding member of the Munich Secession exhibiting regularly from 1916. In 1895 he established a private painting school and teaches 1899-1905 at Munich of the “Münchner Künstlerinnenvereins Damen-akademie”. He is an advocate of outdoor painting (“Freilichtmalerei”). Travels to the Donau, Black Forest, Bodensee (Sw.), Norway, the isle of Sylt and the Dutch coast (see his student Elise Daimler). He is known of his series of bathing boys (“badende Knaben”) created between 1893-1915. Helene Wagner (1878-1956) a Stuttgart painter had also  been his student in Munich. 

Rettich, Clara (Klara) (New-York 19-10-1860 – 19-05-1916 Stuttgart)

Portrait, animal and flower painter but also worked in other media. Student of impressionist painter, illustrator, lithographer and Stuttgart “Kunstakademie” director (1902-1912) Robert von Haug (Stuttgart 1857-1922). She was involved in executing in oil the designs created by antroposophist Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925), the so-called Apocalyptic Seals in 1907.  

Dresslers KHB 1921: Stuttgart Ostheim, Atelier: Rotenburgerstrase 2.

All pictures borrowed from the Internet for friendly, educational and non commercial use only.