Wilhelm Kaufmann (painter, 1901)
Wilhelm Kaufmann (born March 18, 1901 in Salzburg ; † September 3, 1999 ibid) was an Austrian painter and citizen of the world who also made lasting merits through his commitment to the preservation of Salzburg's urban landscapes and the architectural face of the city.
Life
His painting began with a strongly romantic attitude towards life. He was brought up in the circle of the youth movement "Wandervogel" for a painter studied at the Vienna School of Applied Arts (now the Academy of Applied Arts in Vienna) 1923 employees Anton Faistauer in shaping the frescoes in the parish church Morzger.
In 1926 he worked with Anton Kolig and Robin Christian Andersen on the production of the tapestries for the Salzburg Festival Theater. In the years between 1938 and 1945 he lived in "inner emigration", mostly in Pinzgau (Land Salzburg). During this time he also looked after the works given to him by the Jewish painter Helene von Taussig .
After the war he took part in the cultural reconstruction of his country with full idealism. He was soon able to visit England, where he had become known as a portraitist even before the Second World War. In 1952, Kaufmann became an art teacher at Westtown School in Pennsylvania. From there he moved to Canada to work as a teacher and freelance painter. He lived here between 1953 and 1957 and drew the diverse, untouched, harmonious nature. During several longer stays, businessman Albert Schweitzer got to know his jungle hospital in Lambarene and dealt with the original ways and forms of life of indigenous peoples.
In numerous wall paintings, Kaufmann draws a picture-perfect narrative style. The artist's many portraits, most of which are impasto-colored, are well known. The central theme of his painting work was always the search for harmony between nature and human civilization.
Even in old age, Kaufmann worked tirelessly as a painter in his studio in the Salzburg Künstlerhaus and was always ready to critically deal with a variety of current issues and to be powerful and politically very active in issues of urban design and conservation of green spaces.
In the last years of his life, he created numerous color lithographs of his oil paintings in collaboration with Martin Gredler in the printing workshop of the Slavi Soucek Foundation in the Trakl House in Salzburg. From 1995 to 1998 9 of these lithographs were exhibited in 9 exhibitions in the "1Blick. Art in the Vorhaus" in Hallein: "The Road to Babati", "The Mount Sekolumu", "The Big Kapok Tree" ...
Appreciation
In honor of its co-founder Kaufmann, the Salzburg Development Aid Organization has launched the Wilhelm Kaufmann Prize for Development Cooperation as part of the Salzburg- Singida city partnership .
In September 2011, the Wilhelm-Kaufmann-Steg over the Salzach , which connects the Salzburg districts of Aigen and Josefiau , was opened.
Literature and Sources
- Adolf Haslinger and Peter Mittermayr: Salzburger Kulturlexikon. Salzburg, 2001 ISBN 3-7017-1129-1
Web links
- Literature by and about Wilhelm Kaufmann in the catalog of the German National Library
- To Wilhelm Kaufmann on the website of the St. Koloman elementary school
Individual evidence
- ↑ https://www.1blick.org/einblick/beginn_1995/kaufmann_1995.html
- ↑ https://www.1blick.org/einblick/beginn_1995/kaufmann_sekolumu_1995.html
- ↑ https://www.1blick.org/einblick/beginn_1995/kaufmann_kapokbaum_1995.html
- ↑ DrehPunktKultur: Wilhelm-Kaufmann-Steg - opening party ( memento of the original from October 7, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , September 16, 2011
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Kaufmann, Wilhelm |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Austrian painter |
| DATE OF BIRTH | March 18, 1901 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Salzburg |
| DATE OF DEATH | September 3, 1999 |
| Place of death | Salzburg |