Hans Richter (6 April 1888 – 1 February 1976) was a German

Dada Dada () or Dadaism was an art movement of the European avant-garde in the early 20th century, with early centres in Zürich, Switzerland, at the Cabaret Voltaire (in 1916). New York Dada began c. 1915, and after 1920 Dada flourished in Pari ...

painter, graphic artist, avant-garde film producer, and art historian. In 1965 he authored the book ''Dadaism'' about the history of the ''Dada'' movement. He was born in

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 constitu ...

into a well-to-do family and died in

Minusio Minusio is a municipality in the district of Locarno in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland. History In the Ceresole section, a significant Iron Age necropolis (c. 6th-5th century BC) was discovered. It held about 20 graves and rich grave goods. ...

, near

Locarno , neighboring_municipalities= Ascona, Avegno, Cadenazzo, Cugnasco, Gerra (Verzasca), Gambarogno, Gordola, Lavertezzo, Losone, Minusio, Muralto, Orselina, Tegna, Tenero-Contra , twintowns =* Gagra, Georgia * Karlovy Vary, Czech ...

, Switzerland.''Oxford Dictionary of Modern and Contemporary Art'', Oxford University, p. 598 From

Expressionism Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it ra ...

through Dadaism, Constructivism and

Neoplasticism Neoplasticism, known in Dutch as ''Nieuwe Beelding'' or the new image, is an avant-garde art theory that arose in 1917 and was employed mainly by Dutch De Stijl artists. The most notable advocates of the theory were the painters Theo van Doe ...

, he was one of the major figures of avant-garde art in the 1910s and 1920s and a catalyst for intellectuals and artists in many disciplines. Richter helped organise exhibitions which revived interest in Dada, both in the United States and Europe. In 1956 he made ''Dadascope'', a film dedicated to Dada poetry.

Germany

In 1908 Richter entered the Academy of Fine Art in Berlin, and the following year the Academy of Fine Art in Weimar. Richter's first contacts with

Modern Art Modern art includes artistic work produced during the period extending roughly from the 1860s to the 1970s, and denotes the styles and philosophies of the art produced during that era. The term is usually associated with art in which the tradi ...

were in 1912 through the

Blaue Reiter ''Der Blaue Reiter'' (The Blue Rider) is a designation by Wassily Kandinsky and Franz Marc for their exhibition and publication activities, in which both artists acted as sole editors in the almanac of the same name, first published in mid-May ...

and in 1913 through the

Erster Deutscher Herbstsalon Erster Deutscher Herbstsalon (First German Autumn Salon) was the title of an art exhibition that was organized in 1913 by Herwarth Walden in Berlin. Henri Rousseau memorial exhibition The exhibition opened on 20 September 1913 in rented rooms ...

gallery Der Sturm, in Berlin. In 1914 he was influenced by

Cubism Cubism is an early-20th-century avant-garde art movement that revolutionized European painting and sculpture, and inspired related movements in music, literature and architecture. In Cubist artwork, objects are analyzed, broken up and reassemble ...

. At that time he also befriended Franz Pfemfert, who was the editor of ''Die Aktion''. Richter contributed to the periodical ''Die Aktion'' in Berlin. His first exhibition was in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and ...

in 1916, and ''Die Aktion'' published a special edition about him. In the same year he was wounded and discharged from the army and went to

Zürich , neighboring_municipalities = Adliswil, Dübendorf, Fällanden, Kilchberg, Maur, Oberengstringen, Opfikon, Regensdorf, Rümlang, Schlieren, Stallikon, Uitikon, Urdorf, Wallisellen, Zollikon , twintowns = Kunming, San Francisco Z ...

and met

Tristan Tzara Tristan Tzara (; ; born Samuel or Samy Rosenstock, also known as S. Samyro; – 25 December 1963) was a Romanian and French avant-garde poet, essayist and performance artist. Also active as a journalist, playwright, literary and art critic, comp ...

Marcel Janco Marcel Janco (, ; common rendition of the Romanian name Marcel Hermann Iancu ; 24 May 1895 – 21 April 1984) was a Romanian and Israeli visual artist, architect and art theorist. He was the co-inventor of Dadaism and a leading exponent of Const ...

Jean Arp Hans Peter Wilhelm Arp (16 September 1886 – 7 June 1966), better known as Jean Arp in English, was a German-French sculptor, painter, and poet. He was known as a Dadaist and an abstract artist. Early life Arp was born in Straßburg (now Stras ...

, and

Hugo Ball Hugo Ball (; 22 February 1886 – 14 September 1927) was a German author, poet, and essentially the founder of the Dada movement in European art in Zürich in 1916. Among other accomplishments, he was a pioneer in the development of sound poetry. ...

, who together were forming the

movement, which he joined. Richter believed that the artist's duty was to be politically active by opposing war and supporting revolution. His first

abstract art Abstract art uses visual language of shape, form, color and line to create a composition which may exist with a degree of independence from visual references in the world. Western art had been, from the Renaissance up to the middle of the 1 ...

works were made in 1917. In 1918,

introduced Richter to

Viking Eggeling Viking Eggeling (21 October 1880, Lund – 19 May 1925, Berlin) was a Swedish avant-garde artist and filmmaker connected to dadaism, Constructivism, and abstract art and was one of the pioneers in absolute film and visual music. His 1 ...

and the two experimented together with film. Richter was co-founder, in 1919, of the Association of Revolutionary Artists (Artistes Radicaux) at Zürich. In the same year he created his first ''Prélude'': an orchestration of a theme developed in eleven drawings. In 1920, he became a member of the November Group in Berlin and contributed to the Dutch periodical ''

De Stijl ''De Stijl'' (; ), Dutch for "The Style", also known as Neoplasticism, was a Dutch art movement founded in 1917 in Leiden. De Stijl consisted of artists and architects. In a more narrow sense, the term ''De Stijl'' is used to refer to a body ...

''. Throughout his career, Richter claimed that his 1921 film, ''Rhythmus 21'', was the first

abstract film Abstract may refer to: * ''Abstract'' (album), 1962 album by Joe Harriott * Abstract of title a summary of the documents affecting title to parcel of land * Abstract (law), a summary of a legal document * Abstract (summary), in academic publishin ...

ever created, but in fact it was preceded by the Italian

Futurist Futurists (also known as futurologists, prospectivists, foresight practitioners and horizon scanners) are people whose specialty or interest is futurology or the attempt to systematically explore predictions and possibilities abo ...

films by

Bruno Corra Bruno Corra is the pseudonym of Bruno Ginanni Corradini ( Ravenna, 9 June 1892 – died in Varese, 20 November 1976), an Italian writer and screenwriter. Career The son of Count Tullio Ginanni Corradini (who was also mayor of Ravenna) and bro ...

and

Arnaldo Ginna Arnaldo Ginna, also known as Arnaldo Ginanni Corradini, was an Italian painter, sculptor and filmmaker. He was born in Ravenna, 7 May 1890; he died in Rome, 26 September 1982. Biography The son of Count Tullio Ginanni Corradini (who was also ...

(as they report in the ''

Futurist Manifesto The ''Manifesto of Futurism'' (Italian: ''Manifesto del Futurismo'') is a manifesto written by the Italian poet Filippo Tommaso Marinetti and published in 1909. Marinetti expresses an artistic philosophy called Futurism that was a rejection of th ...

of Cinema''), as well as by fellow German artist

Walter Ruttmann Walter Ruttmann (28 December 1887 – 15 July 1941) was a German cinematographer and film director, an important German abstract experimental film maker, along with Hans Richter, Viking Eggeling and Oskar Fischinger. He is best known for dire ...

, who produced ''Lichtspiel Opus 1'' in 1920. Nevertheless, Richter's film ''Rhythmus 21'' is considered an important early abstract film. In 1933, The Nazis ransacked Richter's studio in Berlin, confiscating or destroying his work. He was stripped of his German citizenship and labelled a "degenerate" artist and "cultural Bolshevik". After attempting, in vain, to make an anti-Nazi film in the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

in 1931–1932, Richter travelled around Europe. He worked for

Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters is ...

in Holland and made commissioned films in Switzerland. He also gave numerous lectures about film. About Richter's

woodcut Woodcut is a relief printing technique in printmaking. An artist carves an image into the surface of a block of wood—typically with gouges—leaving the printing parts level with the surface while removing the non-printing parts. Areas tha ...

s and drawings

Michel Seuphor Fernand Berckelaers (10 March 1901, in Borgerhout – 12 February 1999, in Paris), pseudonym Michel Seuphor (anagram of Orpheus), was a Belgian painter. Seuphor established a literary magazine, '' Het Overzicht'', in Antwerp in 1921. He moved i ...

wrote that Richter's black-and-whites graphic work, together with that of

Hans Arp Hans Peter Wilhelm Arp (16 September 1886 – 7 June 1966), better known as Jean Arp in English, was a German-French sculptor, painter, and poet. He was known as a Dadaist and an abstract artist. Early life Arp was born in Straßburg (now Str ...

and

, are the most typical works of the Zürich period of Dada. From 1923 to 1926, Richter edited, together with Werner Gräff and

Mies van der Rohe Ludwig Mies van der Rohe ( ; ; born Maria Ludwig Michael Mies; March 27, 1886August 17, 1969) was a German-American architect. He was commonly referred to as Mies, his surname. Along with Alvar Aalto, Le Corbusier, Walter Gropius and Frank Lloyd ...

, the periodical ''G. Material zur elementaren Gestaltung.'' Richter wrote of his own attitude toward film:

I conceive of the film as a modern art form particularly interesting to the sense of sight. Painting has its own peculiar problems and specific sensations, and so has the film. But there are also problems in which the dividing line is obliterated, or where the two infringe upon each other. More especially, the cinema can fulfill certain promises made by the ancient arts, in the realization of which painting and film become close neighbors and work together.

United States

Richter moved from Switzerland to the United States in 1940 and became an American citizen. Beginning in 1941 he taught at the Institute of Film Techniques at the

City College of New York The City College of the City University of New York (also known as the City College of New York, or simply City College or CCNY) is a public university within the City University of New York (CUNY) system in New York City. Founded in 1847, Cit ...

before taking over as director.Haftmann, p. 222 While living in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, Richter directed two feature films, ''

Dreams That Money Can Buy ''Dreams That Money Can Buy'' is a 1947 experimental feature color film written, produced, and directed by surrealist artist and dada film-theorist Hans Richter. The film was produced by Kenneth Macpherson and Peggy Guggenheim. Collaborators ...

'' (1947) and '' 8 x 8: A Chess Sonata in 8 Movements'' (1957) in collaboration with

Max Ernst Max Ernst (2 April 1891 – 1 April 1976) was a German (naturalised American in 1948 and French in 1958) painter, sculptor, printmaker, graphic artist, and poet. A prolific artist, Ernst was a primary pioneer of the Dada movement and Surrealis ...

Jean Cocteau Jean Maurice Eugène Clément Cocteau (, , ; 5 July 1889 – 11 October 1963) was a French poet, playwright, novelist, designer, filmmaker, visual artist and critic. He was one of the foremost creatives of the s ...

Paul Bowles Paul Frederic Bowles (; December 30, 1910November 18, 1999) was an American expatriate composer, author, and translator. He became associated with the Moroccan city of Tangier, where he settled in 1947 and lived for 52 years to the end of his ...

Fernand Léger Joseph Fernand Henri Léger (; February 4, 1881 – August 17, 1955) was a French painter, sculptor, and filmmaker. In his early works he created a personal form of cubism (known as " tubism") which he gradually modified into a more figurative, p ...

Alexander Calder Alexander Calder (; July 22, 1898 – November 11, 1976) was an American sculptor known both for his innovative mobiles (kinetic sculptures powered by motors or air currents) that embrace chance in their aesthetic, his static "stabiles", and hi ...

Marcel Duchamp Henri-Robert-Marcel Duchamp (, , ; 28 July 1887 – 2 October 1968) was a French painter, sculptor, chess player, and writer whose work is associated with Cubism, Dada, and conceptual art. Duchamp is commonly regarded, along with Pablo Picasso ...

, and others, which was partially filmed on the lawn of his summer house in

Southbury, Connecticut Southbury is a town in western New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. Southbury is north of Oxford and Newtown, and east of Brookfield. Its population was 19,879 at the 2020 census. Southbury comprises sprawling rural country areas, sub ...

. In 1957, he finished a film entitled ''Dadascope'' with original poems and prose spoken by their creators:

Raoul Hausmann Raoul Hausmann (July 12, 1886 – February 1, 1971) was an Austrian artist and writer. One of the key figures in Berlin Dada, his experimental photographic collages, sound poetry, and institutional critiques would have a profound influence on ...

Richard Huelsenbeck Carl Wilhelm Richard Hülsenbeck (aka Charles R. Hulbeck) (23 April 189220 April 1974) was a German writer, poet, and psychoanalyst born in Frankenau, Hessen-Nassau who was associated with the formation of the Dada movement. Life and work Huel ...

, and

Kurt Schwitters Kurt Hermann Eduard Karl Julius Schwitters (20 June 1887 – 8 January 1948) was a German artist who was born in Hanover, Germany. Schwitters worked in several genres and media, including dadaism, constructivism, surrealism, poetry, sound, paint ...

. After 1958, Richter spent parts of the year in

Ascona 300px, Ascona Ascona ( lmo, label= Ticinese, Scona ) is a municipality in the district of Locarno in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland. It is located on the shore of Lake Maggiore. The town is a popular tourist destination and holds the yea ...

and

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the ...

and returned to painting.

Peggy Guggenheim Marguerite "Peggy" Guggenheim ( ; August 26, 1898 – December 23, 1979) was an American art collector, bohemian and socialite. Born to the wealthy New York City Guggenheim family, she was the daughter of Benjamin Guggenheim, who went down with ...

organized his first solo show in the United States in which his large painted scrolls, inspired by the Second World War, featured prominently. In 1963, he directed the short film ''From the Circus to the Moon'' about the American artist

. In 1965, Richter was also the author of a first-hand account of the Dada movement titled ''Dada: Art and Anti-Art'' which also included his reflections on the emerging

Neo-Dada Neo-Dada was a movement with audio, visual and literary manifestations that had similarities in method or intent with earlier Dada artwork. It sought to close the gap between art and daily life, and was a combination of playfulness, iconoclasm, a ...

artworks.

Personal life

Richter got to know Ré Niemayer in 1922, whom he would marry in 1926. In 1928, the two separated and by 1931 they were divorced.

Filmography

* '' Rhythmus 21'' (1921) * ''Rhythmus 23'' (1923) * ''Rhythmus 25'' (1925) * ''Filmstudie'' (1926) with music by

Hans Heinz Stuckenschmidt Hans Heinz Stuckenschmidt (1 November 1901 – 15 August 1988) was a German composer, musicologist, and historian and critic of music. Life Stuckenschmidt was born in Strasbourg. At as early an age as 19, he was the Berlin-based music criti ...

* ''Inflation'' (1927) * '' Vormittagsspuk'' ("Ghosts Before Breakfast", with music by Hindemith) (1928) * ''Zweigroschenzauber'' (1929) * ''The Storming of La Sarraz'' (written only, directed by

Sergei Eisenstein Sergei Mikhailovich Eisenstein (russian: Сергей Михайлович Эйзенштейн, p=sʲɪrˈɡʲej mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪtɕ ɪjzʲɪnˈʂtʲejn, 2=Sergey Mikhaylovich Eyzenshteyn; 11 February 1948) was a Soviet film director, scree ...

, lost) (1929) * ''Rennsymphonie'' (1929) * ''Alles dreht sich, alles bewegt sich'' (1929) * ''Everyday'' (1929) * ''Neues Leben'' (1930) * ''Europa Radio'' (1931) * ''Hallo Everybody'' (1933) * ''Keine Zeit für Tränen'' (1934) * ''Vom Blitz zum Fernsenhbild'' (1936) * ''

'' (1947) * '' 8 x 8: A Chess Sonata in 8 Movements'' (1957) * ''Dadascope'' (1961) * ''From the Circus to the Moon'' (1963)

Notes

References

* Stephen C. Foster, ''Hans Richter: Activism, Modernism, and the Avant-Garde'' (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1998). . . * Mark Purves and Rob McFarland, "Hans Richter: Biography" in: Christoph Bareither et al. (Eds.): ''Hans Richters "Rhythmus 21": Schlüsselfilm der Moderne.''Königshausen und Neumann, Würzburg, 2012. (Article in English). * Hans Richter, 'Towards a New World Plasticism' in Mary Anne Caws
''Manifesto: A Century of Isms''
(Lincoln, Nebraska and London: University of Nebraska Press, 2001).

External links

*
"From the Circus to the Moon" (1963)
on ''

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and 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 Google, and is the second mo ...

'' *
Hans Richter films at Ubuweb

Hans Richter at YouTube
* Finding aid for Arnold Eagle papers and films related to Hans Richter,

Getty Research Institute The Getty Research Institute (GRI), located at the Getty Center in Los Angeles, California, is "dedicated to furthering knowledge and advancing understanding of the visual arts".

, Los Angeles. Accession No. 970021. This collection documents the film collaborations and friendship of German-born Dadaist, Hans Richter, and New York photographer and cinematographer, Arnold Eagle. It includes color film footage, out-takes and audiotracks for several of Richter's films, such a
Dreams that Money Can Buy
an
8 x 8 Chess Sonata in 8 movements.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Richter, Hans 1888 births 1976 deaths Abstract animation Abstract painters American experimental filmmakers Dada Film directors from Berlin Film theorists German art historians German artists German emigrants to the United States German experimental filmmakers German male non-fiction writers People from the Province of Brandenburg Writers from Berlin