Fritz Osswald (23 June 1878 – 24 August 1966) was a Swiss painter, member of the
Munich Secession
The Munich Secession was an association of visual artists who broke away from the mainstream Munich Artists' Association in 1892, to promote and defend their art in the face of what they considered official paternalism and its conservative polic ...
and of the
Darmstadt Artists' Colony
The Darmstadt Artists’ Colony refers both to a group of Jugendstil artists as well as to the buildings in Mathildenhöhe in Darmstadt in which these artists lived and worked in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The artists were largely fi ...
.
Biography
Fritz Osswald was born in Hottingen (
Zürich
Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...
) on 23 June 1878. The son of sculptor Albert Osswald, he spent his childhood between Zurich and
Winterthur
, neighboring_municipalities = Brütten, Dinhard, Elsau, Hettlingen, Illnau-Effretikon, Kyburg, Lindau, Neftenbach, Oberembrach, Pfungen, Rickenbach, Schlatt, Seuzach, Wiesendangen, Zell
, twintowns = Hall in Tirol (Austria), La ...
, where he attended primary school; after a few years in a boarding school in French-speaking Switzerland, he enrolled at the art institutes of Zurich and
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
.
In 1897, Osswald frequented courses by
Wilhelm von Diez
Albrecht Christoph Wilhelm von Diez (17 January 1839, Bayreuth – 25 February 1907, Munich) was a German painter and illustrator of the Munich School.
Life
He attended a trade school in Munich, followed by the Polytechnic School (precursor of ...
and
Nikolaos Gyzis
Nikolaos Gyzis ( el, Νικόλαος Γύζης ; german: Nikolaus Gysis; 1 March 1842 – 4 January 1901) was considered one of Greece's most important 19th century painters. He was most famous for his work '' Eros and the Painter'', his first ...
at the
Academy of Fine Arts in Munich, and was awarded two medals of honour. From 1904, he was represented in Munich’s Secession exhibitions, where he encountered outstanding success, selling his first works to museums. Appreciated as an emerging artist – and compared by critics to well-established names – Osswald married in 1907 Elsbeth Leopold, who gave birth to their daughter Agnes Hildegard, known as Hilla, in May of the following year. The artist travelled extensively between Italy, Austria, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and the North and Baltic seas; until, in 1913, he was invited by
Ernest Ludwig, Grand Duke of Hesse to become a member of the artists’ colony of
Darmstadt
Darmstadt () is a city in the States of Germany, state of Hesse in Germany, located in the southern part of the Frankfurt Rhine Main Area, Rhine-Main-Area (Frankfurt Metropolitan Region). Darmstadt has around 160,000 inhabitants, making it th ...
, cradle and stronghold of the
Jugendstil
''Jugendstil'' ("Youth Style") was an artistic movement, particularly in the decorative arts, that was influential primarily in Germany and elsewhere in Europe to a lesser extent from about 1895 until about 1910. It was the German counterpart of ...
. Here Osswald, already well-known, decorated the formal reception rooms of the ''alta borghesia''. With a private studio at his disposal inside the castle, he feverishly painted urban views, factories on the Rhine, vases of flowers, and large winter landscapes. By now at the apex of his career, the Swiss artist elicited enthusiasm in the most important German galleries – Munich,
Hamburg
(male), (female) en, Hamburger(s),
Hamburgian(s)
, timezone1 = Central (CET)
, utc_offset1 = +1
, timezone1_DST = Central (CEST)
, utc_offset1_DST = +2
, postal ...
,
Stuttgart
Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the ...
,
Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
,
Heidelberg
Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...
,
Dresden
Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth larg ...
. At the outbreak of the
Great War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, Fritz Osswald was summoned back to Switzerland to enrol for military service, from which he was afterwards discharged when he had passed the age limit. On his return to Darmstadt, he was able to take up his previously nominated position as Professor of Art. In 1919 he left the artists’ colony and departed for the outskirts of Zurich, before buying, in 1922, a large house in
Starnberg,
Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
. Here he lived with his family until his death, which passed on 24 August 1966, after years of continuous artistic production.
Works
''"I know that every winter morning, particularly on the coldest of days, he is out there, wearing thick mittens, painting behind the
Hofgarten, or in
Nymphenburg Park, or other places around Munich. His rendering of the winter scene as a symbol of our existence, where the light and icy atmosphere become a metaphor of fading life, are a particularity of his art".''
(Art critic
Georg Biermann in ''
Velhagen & Klasings Monatshefte'' magazine, 1909.)
A post-impressionist painter, Fritz Osswald created thousands of large winter landscapes, snowy urban views and still lifes. Through intense collaboration with major art dealers like
Ernst Arnold
Ernst is both a surname and a given name, the German, Dutch, and Scandinavian form of Ernest. Notable people with the name include:
Surname
* Adolf Ernst (1832–1899) German botanist known by the author abbreviation "Ernst"
* Anton Ernst (1975-) ...
, and galleries such as
Heinemann Heinemann may refer to:
* Heinemann (surname)
* Heinemann (publisher), a publishing company
* Heinemann Park, a.k.a. Pelican Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States
See also
* Heineman
* Jamie Hyneman
James Franklin Hyneman (born Se ...
,
Thannhauser and , he achieved critical and popular acclaim until the mid-1930s.
On the 50th anniversary of Osswald's death, "L'école des Italiens – Museo Immaginario" and Fondazione Poscio set up a large exhibition ''"Fritz Osswald – The sense of snow"'' in
Domodossola
Domodossola (; Lombard: Dòm) is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, in the region of Piedmont, northern Italy. It was also known as Oscela, Oscella, Oscella dei Leponzi, Ossolo, Ossola Lepontiorum, and Domo d'Ossola ...
(
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
) with over 70 paintings on show; Italian art publishers ''Umberto Allemandi & C.'' and ''Mme Webb'' released the catalogue in Italian, German and English. The same collection was on show between July 1 and October 8, 2017 in
Cles
Cles (german: Glöß; Nones: ''Clés'' or ''Cliès'') is a town and ''comune'' in Trentino, in the Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol region of northern Italy. It is the main town of Val di Non.
It is the main town of and is located in Val di Non. M ...
(
Trentino
Trentino ( lld, Trentin), officially the Autonomous Province of Trento, is an autonomous province of Italy, in the country's far north. The Trentino and South Tyrol constitute the region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, an autonomous region ...
).
Paintings by the Swiss artist can also be seen at the
Hessisches Landesmuseum Darmstadt
Hessisches Landesmuseum Darmstadt (HLMD) is a large multidisciplinary museum in Darmstadt, Germany. The museum exhibits Rembrandt, Beuys, a primeval horse and a mastodon under the slogan "The whole world under one roof". As one of the oldest pub ...
, the Starnberger See Museum and the of ''Chur'' (
Grisons
The Grisons () or Graubünden,Names include:
*german: (Kanton) Graubünden ;
* Romansh:
** rm, label= Sursilvan, (Cantun) Grischun
** rm, label=Vallader, (Chantun) Grischun
** rm, label= Puter, (Chantun) Grischun
** rm, label=Surmiran, (Cant ...
, Switzerland).
Exhibitions
* 1904 Munich (Secession)
* 1905 Zurich (Künstlerhaus)
* 1906 Munich (
Glaspalast)
* 1906 Zurich (National Exhibition of Swiss Art)
* 1909
Le Locle
Le Locle (; german: Luggli) is a Communes of Switzerland, municipality in the Canton of Neuchâtel in Switzerland.
It is situated in the Jura Mountains, a few kilometers from the city of La Chaux-de-Fonds.
It is the third smallest city in Switz ...
(Swiss Society of Fine Arts)
* 1910 Dresden (Ernst Arnold gallery)
* 1910-1929-1936 Munich (Heinemann gallery)
* 1921 Zurich (
Kunsthaus)
* 1922 Munich (Thannhauser gallery and Brakl)
* 1936 Munich (Civic gallery)
* 1952-1954-1956 Munich (
Haus der Kunst)
* 1977 Darmstadt (Hessisches Landesmuseum Darmstadt, Mathildenhöhe)
* 1979 Fürstenfeldbruck (Klostergalerie)
* 2006 Starnberg (Kreissparkasse and Civic gallery)
* 2013 Domodossola (L'école des Italiens – Museo Immaginario)
* 2016 Domodossola (Casa de Rodis)
''Fritz Osswald – The sense of Snow'' Video gallery of Domodossola exhibition ("L'école des Italiens – Museo Immaginario", Collezione Poscio)
on YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
* 2016 Domodossola (L'école des Italiens – Museo Immaginario)
* 2017 Cles ()
Paintings
''Bach (bei Mittenwald)''
''Blick vom Schneefernerhaus auf der Zugspitze''
''Blick von Braunwald gegen Hausstock''
''Bovalhütte''
''Die Giumels von Preda''
''Engadin im Winter''
''Garmisch-Partenkirchen''
''Kleine Tannen''
''Matterhorn''
''Murnau (Blick gegen Kochel)''
''Piz Bernina und Piz Roseg''
''Piz San Jon, 1917''
''Porträt einer alten Frau in Tracht, 1905''
''Schloss Tarasp''
''Sellahaus mit Sassolungo''
''Starnbergersee''
''St. Christoph am Arlberg''
''Tauwetter, 1910''
''Verschneite Parkanlage''
''Vor dem Matterhorn''
''Winterliche Flusslandschaft mit Birken''
''Zugspitze, 1916''
References
Additional literature
* Wilhelm Michel: ''Maler Fritz Osswald – München'' In: ''Deutsche Kunst und Dekoration: illustrierte Monatshefte für moderne Malerei, Plastik, Architektur, Wohnungskunst u. künstlerisches Frauen-Arbeiten,'' 24/1909,
Digital version
* Georg Biermann: ''Ein Münchener Maler'' In: ''Velhagen & Klasings Monatshefte'', 190
Digital version
* Hermann Uhde-Bernays
Hermann Uhde-Bernays (31 October 1873 – 7 June 1965) was a German German studies scholar and art historian.
Life
Born in Weimar, Uhde-Bernays was the son of the journalist Hermann Uhde (1845-1879) and stepson of Michael Bernays. He attended ...
: ''Fritz Osswald – München'' In: ''Deutsche Kunst und Dekoration: illustrierte Monatshefte für moderne Malerei, Plastik, Architektur, Wohnungskunst u. künstlerisches Frauen-Arbeiten,'' 32/1913,
Numerized version
See also
*Munich Secession
The Munich Secession was an association of visual artists who broke away from the mainstream Munich Artists' Association in 1892, to promote and defend their art in the face of what they considered official paternalism and its conservative polic ...
*Darmstadt Artists' Colony
The Darmstadt Artists’ Colony refers both to a group of Jugendstil artists as well as to the buildings in Mathildenhöhe in Darmstadt in which these artists lived and worked in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The artists were largely fi ...
*Jugendstil
''Jugendstil'' ("Youth Style") was an artistic movement, particularly in the decorative arts, that was influential primarily in Germany and elsewhere in Europe to a lesser extent from about 1895 until about 1910. It was the German counterpart of ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Osswald, Fritz
Landscape painters
1878 births
1966 deaths
19th-century Swiss painters
19th-century German male artists
Swiss male painters
20th-century Swiss painters
Academy of Fine Arts, Munich alumni
Munich School
19th-century Swiss male artists
20th-century Swiss male artists