Otto Niemeyer-Holstein

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Otto Niemeyer-Holstein (born May 11, 1896 in Kiel , † February 20, 1984 in Koserow ) was a German painter .

Life

Otto Niemeyer's father was the international lawyer Theodor Niemeyer , his brother the architect and painter Johannes Niemeyer . He was the fifth child in the family.

From 1902 to 1914 he attended elementary school and high school. As a volunteer he did military service in 1914/1915 after training as a hussar in Schleswig . In 1916 he was accepted as a war disabled in Switzerland , where he received his first instruction in painting. He drew the landscapes in the Engadin and Ticino and got to know Ascona's circle of artists here . Together with Marianne von Werefkin and 5 other painters, he was a founding member of the local artist group “The Great Bear” in 1924. He made trips to Italy , Yugoslavia , Spain and France . He got to know Alexej von Jawlensky and Arthur Segal , among others . He received lessons from Curt Witte at the Kassel Academy.

On the advice of his friend, the writer Werner von der Schulenburg, he added “Holstein” to his birth name Otto Niemeyer in 1917 in order to emphasize his geographical roots. He signed his pictures with "ONH".

In 1920 he married Hertha Langwara. The son Peter, born in 1921, comes from the marriage. In 1925 the couple divorced.

In 1926 he moved to Berlin . He married Anneliese Schmidt in 1927; The son Günter, born in 1937, comes from this marriage. Niemeyer-Holstein studied with Willy Jaeckel and Arthur Segal . From 1933 the artist lived on Usedom between the towns of Koserow and Zempin ; From 1936 on, he used a disused Berlin S-Bahn car (a multiple unit of the test train E, retired in 1933) as a place of work and residence, initially only in summer. From 1939 he lived here all year round. He named this property Lüttenort (place for "Lütter", after his sailing boat "Lütter" - Low German: "Little one"). Here you will find an ensemble of painting and sculpture, combined with playful architecture and garden art. He was in contact with the nearby painters Herbert Wegehaupt and Otto Manigk .

Having to 1933 still in numerous exhibitions in Germany (Berlin, Bielefeld, Bremen, Dessau, Halle / Saale, Lübeck, Marburg), Austria had been involved (Vienna), Italy and Switzerland, his paintings were by the Nazis to from Museums removed, he took part in three exhibitions. Niemeyer-Holstein traveled to Scandinavia with his sailing boat .

From 1943 he was obliged to work as a railway conductor in Trassenheide and in gardening. He sailed on the Baltic Sea with paying guests . In 1944 his son Peter died as a naval long-range reconnaissance aircraft over the Skagerrak .

From 1948 he exhibited his works again at home and abroad. From 1955 he went on study trips that took him to Bulgaria in 1955 , Italy in 1958, Ticino in 1958 and Romania in 1959 ; In 1960 he traveled by ship (MS Leipzig) through the Mediterranean Sea and to China , in 1962 he made trips to Poland and in 1963 to the Soviet Union .

Since 1958 he has also dealt with woodcuts , etchings and lithographs .

In 1963 Niemeyer-Holstein became president of the committee for the preparation and implementation of the Baltic Sea Week in Rostock . On October 7, 1964, he became a professor and in 1969 a member of the Academy of Arts of the GDR .

Niemeyer-Holstein repeatedly came into conflict with the state power of the GDR, u. a. through his critical attitude towards the suppression of the Prague Spring 1968 in Czechoslovakia.

In 1971 he suffered a heart attack . In 1975 he bought the Dutch windmill in Benz , had it restored and made it accessible to the public as a technical monument. Otto Niemeyer-Holstein died in Lüttenort on February 20, 1984. He was buried in the cemetery in Benz; his second wife Annelise died on October 5, 1984.

Sculpture by Waldemar Grzimek at the grave of Niemeyer-Holstein
New gallery - Atelier Otto Niemeyer-Holstein in Lüttenort

estate

Otto Niemeyer-Holstein decreed in his will that after his death Lüttenort should be preserved as it was during his lifetime. It can still be viewed like this today, with an unfinished work on the easel. In addition to the studio, the Neue Galerie in Lüttenort has now been built with exhibitions on the work of Niemeyer-Holstein and the Usedom artist group .

Exhibitions (selection)

Awards

literature

Web links

Commons : Otto Niemeyer-Holstein  - Collection of images, videos and audio files
personal data
SURNAME Niemeyer-Holstein, Otto
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Niemeyer, Otto
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German painter
DATE OF BIRTH May 11, 1896
PLACE OF BIRTH Kiel
DATE OF DEATH 20th February 1984
Place of death Koserow