Katharina Weissenborn (artist)

Katharina Auguste Wilhelmine Weissenborn (born November 14, 1884 in Jena , † April 16, 1978 in Überlingen ) was a German painter , graphic artist and writer .

Life

Katharina Weissenborn was born on November 14, 1884 in Jena and grew up in a middle-class academic family. The young woman's artistic talent was encouraged early on by her parents, who enabled her to take one year of private drawing lessons in Dresden with Georg Lührig , Georg Erler and Georg Jahn after finishing school . In 1902 she was the first woman to be accepted at the Grand Ducal Saxon Art School in Weimar , where she studied for four years. Weissenborn was taught in Weimar from 1903 by Hans Olde , who headed the Weimar Art School from 1902 to 1910. The sculptor and painter Sascha Schneider was also her teacher. One of her fellow students was Max Beckmann . Already during their studies they took study trips to Paris , Worpswede and southern England . Because of her educational background, Weissenborn was given permission to take the exam as an art teacher for secondary schools and training centers at the Royal Art School in Berlin . This was followed by a year of teaching at the teachers' seminar in Erfurt . During a further study trip to Paris, the renowned Salon d'Automne exhibited some of the artist's works. In 1911, the single Weissenborn moved to Alexandria in Egypt , where she took part in excavations , painted, wrote, taught and participated in exhibitions. When the First World War broke out , the artist returned to Germany, only to settle in Egypt again after 1918. This was followed by artistically fruitful years in Palestine , India and Nepal .

When the Second World War broke out , Katharina Weissenborn returned to Weimar in 1939, but often had to change her place of residence due to the bombing and thereby lost some of her works and manuscripts. After 1945, it was directed as a union organized Thuringian artist a studio and was a board member of the Free German Trade Union Federation (FDGB), the "fine arts" , and the Cultural Association , where she was involved in the cultural reconstruction of the country. She came from Weimar to Lake Constance in 1948 through Curt Weller Verlag, based in Konstanz , which wanted to take over the complete edition of her 40 books, where she initially lived for a few months in a women's dormitory on the Höri . Since Weller Verlag went bankrupt, only one book by Katharina Weissenborn was published, which nonetheless stayed on Lake Constance. She lived in Gaienhofen and maintained contacts with the writers Hermann Hesse and Ludwig Finckh as well as with the painter Julius Bissier, who lived in Hagnau . In 1953 the 69-year-old moved one last time and settled in Meersburg , where she quickly made contact with the artistic circles of the International Lake Constance Club and soon became its vice-president. She organized exhibitions and literary lectures for the “Fine Arts” section and took part in the annual art exhibitions in Singen several times . Up until old age Katharina Weissenborn regularly drove to Constance to give lectures on foreign countries in the Lyceumsclub. Katharina Weissenborn died on April 16, 1978 at the age of 93 in Überlingen.

Art historical appreciation

Katharina Weissenborn had a dual talent: She was not only active as a graphic artist and painter, but also wrote over 40 books, including children's books, non-fiction books, novels and poems. Above all, she processed her numerous trips to the Orient and Asia in her literary and visual artistic work.

Printmaking techniques such as etching or color woodcut , which she claims to have further developed so that the colors always appear fresh, were her preferred medium. Her color woodcuts amaze with their clear and solid image composition and realistic human portraits, which require close observation and reveal Weissenborn's in-depth knowledge of oriental and Asian culture. Her fascination encompassed both the present and the heyday of high cultures. In a newspaper article, a critic praised her colorful wood engravings from Egypt and recognized her virtuoso play with the different colors: "Miss Weissenborn's etchings and colored woodcuts on Egyptian life make a complete travel dairy full of graphic and realistic charms. Her visualization of objects in still-life and landscapes is subtle and experienced. Her color scheme is strong, confident and emphatic. "

The motivic similarity of the woodcuts to the photographs she took is striking, which suggests that they served the artist as models. Something similar can be seen in her drawings, which are characterized by quick, sketchy lines. Some of the etchings and colored woodcuts, through which Weissenborn made a name at the beginning of the 20th century, were donated by the artist to the collection of the Kunstverein Konstanz in 1968 .

In addition to prints, Weissenborn also created a large number of watercolors and oil paintings that clearly show the influence of French Impressionism . Landscapes are captured fleetingly and intuitively through a strong wealth of colors, the paint is applied with a quick, short brushstroke, the coloring is bright, but is repeatedly broken tonally by the inclusion of white. Although the works of Katharina AW Weissenborn were bought by respected personalities and museums, as was stated in the congratulations of the city of Meersburg on her 90th birthday, she is hardly represented in the art world. Like many of her contemporaries, Weissenborn was largely forgotten. Most of her works are now in private hands.

Oeuvre (selection)

Visual arts

Oil on canvas / cardboard

• Lichtenwiese 1961, oil on canvas, 62.8 × 81.8 × 2.5 cm, Meersburg City Museum.
• Self-portrait 1963, oil on cardboard, 46.5 × 45.6 cm, Meersburg City Museum.
• Landscape near Florence 1964, oil on canvas, 45 × 50.5 cm, Städtische Wessenberg-Galerie Konstanz.
• Spring in Meersburg 1968, oil on canvas, 45.5 × 59.5 cm, Städtische Wessenberg-Galerie Konstanz.

Mixed media on canvas

• Still life with a flower 1960/70, mixed media on canvas, 62.2 × 43.9 cm, Meersburg City Museum.
• The Meersburg 1966, mixed media on canvas, 45 × 59.2 × 2 cm, Meersburg City Museum.

Color woodcut / print

• Die Nilbarke undated, color woodcut hand print, 30.4 × 24.8 cm, Städtische Wessenberg-Galerie Konstanz.
• Market in Luxor - Suk o.J., color woodcut self-printed, 24.7 × 21 cm, Städtische Wessenberg-Galerie Konstanz.
• Shellal near the dam, Upper Egypt no year, color woodcut hand print, 24.4 × 24.3 cm, Städtische Wessenberg-Galerie Konstanz.
• Straße in Aswan, Upper Egypt no year, color woodcut hand print, 24.5 19 cm, Städtische Wessenberg-Galerie Konstanz.
• Girl from Nubia, no year, color woodcut printed by hand, 12.5 × 7.7 cm, Städtische Wessenberg-Galerie Konstanz.
• The blind beggar, var. 1 no year, color woodcut self-printed, 21.2 × 13.5 cm, Städtische Wessenberg-Galerie Konstanz.

literature

• Chien Lung. A love story from the border region of Tibet, Curt Weller Verlag, Konstanz 1948.
• Whistle and the animals, Verlag Werden und Wirken, Weimar 1949.
• Ali the Bedouin, Schaffenstein Verlag, Cologne 1951.

Exhibitions / reception

Weissenborn exhibited at the renowned Salon d'Automne in Paris early on and although she was a recognized artist and writer during her lifetime and later when she moved to Lake Constance, her work is now almost forgotten. Most of her pictures are in private hands, her literary work is only available in antiquarian form.

In addition to her artistic activities, she was a union member and became a member of the board of the Free German Trade Union Federation (FDGB), in the area of ​​"fine arts", as well as in the Kulturbund. As part of her cultural work, she campaigned for a cultural rebuilding in the area of ​​the Soviet occupation zone .

Their presence on Lake Constance from 1948 was also reflected in the press. The Südkurier wrote about her exhibition in Meersburg Castle in 1985: “Katharina Weißenborn works with extreme precision, not only in the application of her technical means, but also in her sensitive feeling for the atmospheric, which is often only indicated with a gesture, a shade of color, a slight veil and yet is very clearly present. "

Between May 9 and August 30, 2020, works by Katharina Weissenborn are on display as part of the exhibition Beruf: Künstlerin! Ten German painters can be seen on Lake Constance . The Städtische Wessenberg-Galerie Konstanz presents the artist together with other artists from southern Germany.

Travel / excursions

• Study trip to Paris, Worpswede and southern England
• 1911 Egypt
• 1918 Egypt
• She then spent the time leading up to the outbreak of World War II in India, Palestine and Nepal.
• After 1945 she returned to Weimar.
• In 1948 she moved to Lake Constance

Quote

“For me there is no distinction based on gender in artistic work; there is only the artist. Our task is elevation and education, our work has to be arrow and wedge in the steadfast direction towards the new. "

- Katharina Weissenborn

Individual evidence

1. ^ European Art Exhibition. Calcutta Show. Rhythm And Harmony Of Line And Color. Newspaper article author: JNB article dated December 2, 1937.
2. ↑ Südkurier of April 10, 1985 on the exhibition in Meersburg Castle (March 31 to April 19, 1985)
3. ↑ Profession: Artist! Ten German painters on Lake Constance. May 9 - August 30, 2020, Städtische Wessenberg-Galerie Konstanz; Exhibition leaflet , accessed on May 24, 2020