Helene Fischer (photographer)
Helene Clara Millie Fischer (born May 1, 1900 in Meisterschwanden ; † April 13, 1978 in Munich ) was a Swiss violinist, skier and photographer.
Life
Helene (also Helen) Fischer was the daughter of Emma Fischer and Johann Jakob Fischer, who, together with his brothers, had made a fortune by making straw hats. She grew up with a sister and two brothers in Meisterschwanden in the manorial «Villa Dubler».
She attended the Geneva Conservatory , where she was tutored by Joseph Szigeti , and later toured with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra .
After the death of their father in 1920, the family gave up the factories in Meisterschwanden. For health reasons - she had lung disease - Helene Fischer came to a sanatorium in Davos . In January 1924 she won the Parsenn Derby , which was held for the first time that year.
In Berlin she met the reporter Titaÿna , who in 1934 was still looking for a photographer for a trip to Indonesia . Fischer pretended to be a photographer by pretending to be her own photos, took a few lessons from an amateur photographer and studied specialist literature during the three-week voyage. Together, the two women published several reports from Southeast Asia .
Fischer later sold series of pictures to Geographical Magazine , Vogue and Lufthansa magazine . Since the early 1930s she has also published numerous photo reports from Southeast Asia, South America and Africa in Swiss magazines such as Zürcher Illustrierte and Schweizer Illustrierte , of which her pictures of the pygmies and Mangbetu attracted particular attention in the late 1950s .
Helene Fischer was often accompanied by Penny Converse. She was also a photographer. Among other things, she photographed the American writer Ernest Hemingway , with whom the two women were friends. Both were passionate hunters and often posed with the hunted animals. After meeting a puma , she gave up the hunt for good because the sight of the animal was so "shameful".
Fischer had the “Safari” chalet built in Davos, and she continued to travel between Europe, Africa, Asia and the USA. She also had a second apartment in Munich. There she met Ilse Collignon , who became a kind of agent for her. It was through her that Helene Fischer made the acquaintance of Leni Riefenstahl , Collignon's sister-in-law. There is a folder in Fischer's estate that is labeled “Leni's Africa”; the imagery of the recordings resembles Helene Fischer's photographs.
In later years, Helene Fischer also made films. The advertising film "Let's go Places Davos", which she directed, was made in the winter of 1963/1964 and was probably shown for the first time in 1965 on the 100th anniversary of the health resort Davos. The cameraman was Heinz Hölscher , the speaker was Gerald Mohr .
Helene Fischer died in Munich on April 13, 1978 as a result of a heart attack . She was buried in Zurich .
Appreciation
According to the Swiss Photo Foundation , Helene Fischer, along with Ella Maillart , Annemarie Schwarzenbach and Helen Keizer, was one of the few women who made a name for themselves at that time with photo reports and text contributions from abroad.
Books
- Skiing East and West. Hastings House, New York 1946.
- People animals adventure. Ensslin & Laiblin, 1975.
- Elephants, lions and pygmies: with camera and rifle in the African bush. Süddeutscher Verlag, Munich 1956.
- English edition: Peril is my Companion. Hale, London 1957.
Web links
- Andreas Tobler: "How about me?" The Swiss Helene Fischer. In: Sunday newspaper from May 10, 2020.
Individual evidence
- ^ Genealogy portal geni.com
- ↑ Andreas Tobler: "How about me?" The Swiss Helene Fischer. In: SonntagsZeitung from May 10, 2020, p. 52.
- ↑ Fotostiftung.ch
- ^ Getty images
- ↑ issuu.com
- ↑ Trailer on YouTube
- ^ Genealogy portal geni.com
- ↑ Fotostiftung.ch
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Fischer, Helene |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Fischer, Helene Clara Millie (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Swiss violinist, skier and travel photographer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | May 1, 1900 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Meisterschwanden |
| DATE OF DEATH | April 13, 1978 |
| Place of death | Munich |