Agnes Holthusen

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Agnes Holthusen (born Weizsäcker , born October 24, 1896 in Frankfurt am Main ; † August 10, 1990 in Hamburg ) was a sponsor of visual artists in Hamburg.

family

Agnes Holthusen was the daughter of the director of the Städelsche Kunstinstitut in Frankfurt am Main, Heinrich Weizsäcker . In 1919 she married the physician Hermann Holthusen . The sons Gottfried (* 1921; fallen in 1944), Wilhelm (* 1923) and Johannes (1924–1985) came from the marriage .

Live and act

From 1916 Agnes Holthusen studied art history , philosophy and classical languages in Heidelberg , where she met her husband. When he followed a call to Hamburg in 1922, the family moved there. Agnes Holthusen was very socially committed and was elected to the boards of the General German Women's Association and the City of Hamburg Women's Associations.

There was personal contact with the art historian Aby Warburg . When he offered her not only to give lectures with him, but also to work as an assistant in the Warburg Library for Cultural Studies , she had to refuse due to social conventions. Nevertheless, she remained very attached to the institute and Warburg. From his entries in the “Diary of the Warburg Cultural Studies Library” it can be seen that she was involved in numerous seminars at Warburg. He described individual scientific contributions in this diary as “outstandingly good” and praised the “amazing freshness and intelligence” with which she had captured a topic.

She had a lifelong friendship with the art historian Rosa Schapire . Excerpts from an extensive correspondence with her were included in her biography. Her circle of friends included artists such as Gustav Heinrich Wolff , Rolf Nesch , Karl Schmidt-Rottluff , Emil Nolde , Karl Kluth , Richard Herre and Arnold Fiedler . Many of her artist friends, such as Anita Rée and Horst Janssen , made portraits of her. She also maintained friendly relationships with the museum directors Gustav Pauli and Max Sauerland . Particularly close to her heart was the artists' aid , a foundation of the Hamburg banker Max Warburg , in which she was involved.

Holthusen also belonged to the "Hamburg Circle", consisting of intellectuals and artists of the upper class, who were characterized by a humanistic attitude and opposed to the NSDAP .

In 1946 she was elected to the council of the Hamburg Monument Protection Office, in 1948 she was appointed to the administrative committee of the Hamburger Kunsthalle , of which she belonged until 1985. After studying the art of Gustav Heinrich Wolff for many years, Holthusen published the fundamental work on the sculptor, who died in 1934, in 1964, and the Holthusen couple was one of his most dedicated collectors. This was her first major publication after the reissue of Schiller's Philosophical Letters in 1937.

Agnes Holthusen died in Hamburg in 1990. A bronze bust made by Gustav H. Wolff in 1930 in the Hamburger Kunsthalle commemorates her.

Publications (selection)

  • Gustav Heinrich Wolff: The plastic and graphic work. Modifications made by Agnes Holthusen. Hamburg 1964.
  • Friedrich von Schiller: Philosophical letters. Reissued and introduced by Agnes Holthusen. Hamburg 1937.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h District assembly Hamburg Mitte, printed matter - 22-0668.1. In: Hamburg.de. Retrieved April 1, 2020 .
  2. ^ Aby Warburg: Diary of the Warburg Cultural Studies Library. Edited by V. Karen. Michels, Berlin 2001, pp. 82, 106, 280 (= Aby Warburg: Collected Writings, Dept. 7, Vol. 7).
  3. ^ Karl Ballmer - Online text: Letter to Agnes Holthusen. Retrieved April 1, 2020 .
  4. ^ Anita Rée, short biography. In: Hamburg personalities from 801-2020. Retrieved April 1, 2020 .
  5. ↑ Maike Bruhns : Art in the Crisis . Vol. 1: Hamburg Art in the “Third Reich” . Hamburg 2001, p. 322
personal data
SURNAME Holthusen, Agnes
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Weizsäcker, Agnes (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German art historian, promoter of visual artists
DATE OF BIRTH October 24, 1896
PLACE OF BIRTH Frankfurt am Main
DATE OF DEATH August 10, 1990
Place of death Hamburg