Bertl Kuch

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Bertl Kuch (born November 11, 1904 in Zweibrücken as Albertina Welscher , † March 4, 1994 in Winnipeg , Canada ) was a German graphic artist , painter and textile artist .

Life

Bertl Kuch grew up as the daughter of the caretaker couple Johann and Sofie Welscher, née Sappl. Already at a young age she called herself Bertl instead of Albertina and kept this practice throughout her life. Although her parents did not have sufficient opportunities to promote the artistic talent BERTL specifically, she succeeded at the State School of Applied Arts in Nuremberg as a master student of Max grains to the painter and commercial artist to be trained. Welscher is listed in the Nuremberg residents' register from 1928 under the heading "Self-employed business people" in the group of commercial graphic artists. As part of her training, she met her future husband Jobst Kuch, b. 1902 and also a master student of Körner. In 1929 the couple married in the Sebalduskirche in Nuremberg . The couple lived at Teutonenstrasse 25 in Nuremberg between 1940 and 1963.

In the following years two larger projects shaped Bertl Kuch's creative period. In 1937 she was commissioned to design the high altar of the newly built Heilig-Geist parish church in Gebersdorf . This work is counted among her most important works. In 1935 she was entrusted with the design of the costumes for the 36 nativity scenes at the Nuremberg Christmas Market . Every year during Advent these are set up in the crib building in the center of the market. In addition, she designed u. a. Posters, such as the first route map for the Nuremberg zoo in 1939 , wall paintings in kindergartens, lithographs and book illustrations.

According to information from the Federal Archives , Bertl Kuch is not listed in the NSDAP membership file, around 80% of which has been handed down.

In the period after 1945, Bertl Kuch appeared primarily as a designer of utility art in public spaces. She also designed the sgraffito for the sundial of the Nuremberg school at Herschelplatz or took over the wall paintings in the former post office at the fruit market , which she dedicated to the topic of "Post". The focus of their work, however, was the creative accompaniment of the Christkindlesmarkt.

After the death of her husband in 1963, Bertl Kuch led a rather secluded life in her house on Teutonenstrasse. She was particularly dedicated to her grandchildren, neighbors and cats. At the age of 80 she gave up her familiar surroundings and moved to live with her daughter's family in Winnipeg, Canada. She died there on March 4, 1994.

Bertl Kuch is described as a fun-loving, cheerful person. She kept a detailed diary over large phases of her life, in which she documented her work and related events with companions. In doing so, she used a distinctly personal style that deliberately included elements of dialect. It was also typical for her to write about herself in the third person instead of the first person:

“Berti went to Munich with construction officer Seegy: tapped antique shops. Seegy: Grüßgott, we need a couple of old doves for crib figures, hams there what? (Berti laughs) But what about hams? Then the national museum, drawing nativity figures, naphthalene stink and in vegetarian: chestnuts with Brussels sprouts and NO beer! "

- Bertl Kuch : Diary, unpublished, quoted in Sellmann

plant

Rauschgoldengel by Bertl Kuch at the Nuremberg Christkindlesmarkt

Lithographs, prints, book illustrations and woodcuts by Kuch can be viewed in the museums of the city of Nuremberg . The design of the winged altar of the Holy Cross Church in Gebersdorf is one of the best-known works in public space.

One of her most famous works can still be seen today at the Nuremberg Christkindlesmarkt . Bertl Kuch made 36 robes based on designs by the sculptor Max Renner for the approximately 50 cm tall wooden figures in the crib in the center of the Christmas market , with the shepherds wearing Franconian costumes as a special feature . The crib was first exhibited in 1935. After the end of the Second World War , the figures were restored by the two artists in 1948 and are still in use today.

Sellmann associates the Kuch style with the tried and tested forms and patterns of traditionalism , with a technically competent and funny design.

Winged altar of the Gebersdorf Holy Cross Church

Winged altar by Bertl Kuch in the Catholic parish church Heilig-Kreuz
in Nuremberg-Gebersdorf (1937)

Bertl Kuch and her husband turned to sacred art and occasionally took on commissions together. In 1937 Bertl Kuch designed an altar triptych as a Passion triptych for the newly built Holy Cross Church in Nuremberg-Gebersdorf, with the traditional pictorial program Carrying the Cross, Crucifixion and Resurrection , while her husband was painting the interior of the church.

Her painting style was based on the high Gothic panel painting from around 1420. The left wing shows Jesus carrying the cross, who is crowded by five henchmen . The crucifixion scene is depicted on the middle wing. This scene is embedded under a golden sky in a landscape probably modeled on the Franconian region. To the right of the crucified Jesus are four holy women, three of whom are veiled and probably represent the three Mary . With them stands, hands folded in prayer, Jesus' favorite disciple, John . Under the cross on the left are three soldiers, the high priest Caiaphas carrying a scroll and a patrician . The right wing panel shows the risen Jesus with a red victory flag in his hand. He stands on the closed grave, which is surrounded by three sleeping guards. On June 11, 1939, the altarpieces were inaugurated in the context of a cross celebration combined with a speech.

Sellmann emphasizes the safe stylistic concept and the solidity of the craftsmanship. However, the work shows hardly any new impulses or stylistic elements of the 30s and remains a little too closely oriented towards historical models. For example, the resurrection scene is similar to the altarpieces on the Wolfgang altar in Nuremberg's Lorenz Church.

The triptych was originally equipped with a cafeteria and a predella , which was decorated with stylized grapevines. After the church was redesigned, these elements were dropped. Since then, the triptych has been located on the rear choir wall of the church without any additional work.

Publications

  • The new Nuremberg. Noris plan of the area of ​​the Nazi party rallies with its buildings and camps. [With 1 suffix]. E. u. H. Frommann, Nuremberg 1937.

literature

  • Volker Sellmann: ... and a pleasure for the people: the nativity scene at the Nuremberg Christmas market by Max Renner and Bertl Kuch . Photos by Monika Runge. Heinrichs-Verl., Bayerische Verl.-Anst., Bamberg 2006, ISBN 978-3-89889-053-3 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k Voker Sellmann: … and a pleasure for people. The nativity scene at the Nuremberg Christkindlesmarkt by Max Renner and Bertl Kuch. Heinrichs-Verlag, Bayrische Verlagsanstalt Bamberg, 2006, ISBN 978-3-89889-053-3 , pp. 84-100.
  2. ↑ Manfred H. Grieb (Hrsg.): Nürnberger Künstlerlexikon : Fine artists, craftsmen, scholars, collectors, cultural workers and patrons from the 12th to the middle of the 20th century. KG Saur, Munich 2007, ISBN 978-3-598-11763-3 , pp. 1825, 1902. (limited Google books preview)
  3. ↑ Susanne von Goessel-Steinmann (ed., Author), Helmut Schwarz (ed.), Toy Museum, Museum d. City of Nuremberg (ed.), Udo Bernstein (designer), Christiane Richter (photographer): Heavenly messengers: Nuremberg and its Rauschgoldengel. Tümmel Verlag, 2004, ISBN 978-3-92159033-1 , p. 60.
  4. ^ Ancestry.de database, Nuremberg residents' register 1928, p. 61, ancestry.de, accessed on December 1, 2017.
  5. ↑ File: Nuernberg-AB-1963.djvu - GenWiki. In: wiki-de.genealogy.net. July 17, 2015, accessed December 1, 2017 .
  6. ↑ a b c d Manfred H. Grieb (ed.): Nürnberger Künstlerlexikon: Fine artists, craftsmen, scholars, collectors, cultural workers and patrons from the 12th to the middle of the 20th century. KG Saur Munich 2007, ISBN 978-3-598-11763-3 , p. 860.
  7. ^ Nicola A. Mögel, Mathias Orgeldinger, Kerstin Söder: Zoo Nuremberg - The landscape zoo at Schmausenbuck and its directors. Page 6 f.
  8. ^ City of Nuremberg (editor) -Dr. Nicola A. Mögel (NAM), Dr. Mathias Orgeldinger (MO): Nuremberg Zoo - Art in the Landscape Zoo , 1st edition 2019; Page 35 ISBN 3-926760-16-8
  9. ^ Note: Paul Seegy (1891–1975), architect, until 1957 building director of the city of Nuremberg
  10. ↑ Voker Sellmann: ... and people of good will. The nativity scene at the Nuremberg Christkindlesmarkt by Max Renner and Bertl Kuch. Heinrichs-Verlag, Bayrische Verlagsanstalt Bamberg, 2006, ISBN 978-3-89889-053-3 , p. 56. On the occasion of a trip to Munich in 1935 to buy material for the nativity figurines of the Christkindlesmarkt.
  11. ^ Nativity scenes - Nuremberg Christmas market from November 30th to December 24th. In: web.archive.org. July 21, 2012, accessed December 2, 2017 .
  12. ↑ The Christmas crib on the Christkindlesmarkt. In: christkindlesmarkt.de. Retrieved December 1, 2017 .
  13. ↑ Kath parish. In: gebersdorf.com. December 5, 1937, accessed December 1, 2017 .
  14. ↑ Afred Pfleger: Chronicle of the Parish of the Holy Cross, page 6, accessed on November 10, 2018
personal data
SURNAME Kuch, Bertl
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Kuch, Albertina (full name); Welscher, Albertina (maiden name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German graphic artist, painter and textile artist
DATE OF BIRTH November 11, 1904
PLACE OF BIRTH Zweibrücken
DATE OF DEATH March 4, 1994
Place of death Winnipeg , Canada