Katja Wulff, also Käthe Wulff, (31 August 1890 − 11 June 1992), was a German-Swiss expressionist dancer (''Ausdruckstänzerin'') and dance instructor. She attended

Rudolf von Laban Rudolf von Laban, also known as Rudolf Laban (German; also ''Rudolph von Laban'', hu, Lábán Rezső János Attila, Lábán Rudolf; 15 December 1879 – 1 July 1958), was an Austro-Hungarian, German and British dance artist, choreographer a ...

's dance classes and became associated with the

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 ...

movement. She ran a dance school and was still teaching there at the age of 90.

Life and career

Born in

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

, Wulff was educated as a teacher of drawing and

gymnastics Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, dedication and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, s ...

(') from 1912 to 1915. From 1913/14, she took dance lessons with Gertrud Falke, and also attended a 1914 summer class on

Monte Verità Monte Verità (Italian; German 'Berg Wahrheit', meaning "Mount Truth" or "Mountain of Truth") is a 321 metres above sea level high hill and a cultural-historical ensemble in the Swiss canton of Ticino. The site is in the municipality of Ascona, ...

with

, dance theoreticist and pioneer of

modern dance Modern dance is a broad genre of western concert or theatrical dance which included dance styles such as ballet, folk, ethnic, religious, and social dancing; and primarily arose out of Europe and the United States in the late 19th and early 20th ...

. She moved to

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

in 1916 and studied for three years with Laban and

Mary Wigman Mary Wigman (born Karoline Sophie Marie Wiegmann; 13 November 1886 – 18 September 1973) was a German dancer and choreographer, notable as the pioneer of expressionist dance, dance therapy, and movement training without pointe shoes. She is con ...

. She graduated in 1918 with a Diploma of Pedagogy in ''tänzerisches Turnen und Kunsttanz'' (" acrobatic dance and expressionist dance"). She founded, together with Suzanne Perrottet, a school for

eurythmy Eurythmy is an expressive movement art originated by Rudolf Steiner in conjunction with his wife, Marie, in the early 20th century. Primarily a performance art, it is also used in education, especially in Waldorf schools, and – as pa ...

. She worked for three years on the

Amalfi Amalfi (, , ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Salerno, in the region of Campania, Italy, on the Gulf of Salerno. It lies at the mouth of a deep ravine, at the foot of Monte Cerreto (1,315 metres, 4,314 feet), surrounded by dramati ...

coast and Capri. In 1923, Wulff founded a school of ''Ausdruckstanz'' in

Basel , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...

where she still taught at the age of 90. She directed a dance company, ''Tanzstudio Wulff'', from 1926, with Mariette von Meyenburg as choreographer. They collaborated with

Paul Sacher Paul Sacher (28 April 190626 May 1999) was a Swiss conductor, patron and billionaire businessperson. At the time of his death Sacher was majority shareholder of pharmaceutical company Hoffmann-La Roche and was considered the third richest person i ...

Max Bill Max Bill (22 December 1908 – 9 December 1994) was a Swiss architect, artist, painter, typeface designer, industrial designer and graphic designer. Early life and education Bill was born in Winterthur. After an apprenticeship as a silversm ...

, Max Sulzbachner and Méret Oppenheim. She had contact with

artists such as Jean Arp and

Sophie Taeuber-Arp Sophie Henriette Gertrud Taeuber-Arp (; 19 January 1889 – 13 January 1943) was a Swiss artist, painter, sculptor, textile designer, furniture and interior designer, architect, and dancer. Born in 1889 in Davos, and raised in Trogen, Switzerlan ...

. She performed at the ''Tänzerkongresse'' in Germany from 1928 to 1930 and at the 1939 Landesausstellung (''Landi'', Swiss state exhibition) in Zürich. In 1936, Wulff became a Swiss citizen. She married Charles Ferdinand Vaucher, a dancer, actor and stage director from Basel, in 1937. They were divorced in 1947. Wulff died at age 101 in the in Basel. The dancer Mary Delpy noted that she walked like a queen, had perfect posture, and continued to teach beyond the age of 90 ("Katja war immer sehr dezent gekleidet und hatte, ich möchte sagen, einen fast königlichen Gang – gerader Rücken, perfekte Haltung. Sie war eine grosse, schöne Frau. Bis mit über 90 hat sie Stunden gegeben, Schülerinnen ausgebildet und sass daneben, wenn ehemalige Schülerinnen Stunden gaben, hat sich eingemischt und mal etwas gesagt dazu. Sie war eine ganz tolle Frau.") Her ''

nachlass ''Nachlass'' (, older spelling ''Nachlaß'') is a German word, used in academia to describe the collection of manuscripts, notes, correspondence, and so on left behind when a scholar dies. The word is a compound in German: ''nach'' means "after ...

'' is held by the

Deutsches Tanzarchiv Köln The Deutsche Tanzarchiv Köln (German Dance Archive Cologne) is a national information and research centre for concert dance in Germany. It is located in the MediaPark in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, with an archive, library, video library a ...

References

Literature

* Vera Isler: ''Schaut uns an: Porträts von Menschen über Achtzig.'' Birkhäuser, Basel 1986, (). *

Frank-Manuel Peter Frank-Manuel Peter (born 1959) is a German dance researcher and historian. Life and work Born in Berlin, Peter studied theatre, history of art, German studies and library science at the Free University of Berlin and graduated as a master's ...

: ''"Falls Sie geneigt sind zu kommen..." Käthe (Katja) Wulff zum 100. Geburtstag.'' In: ''Tanzdrama'' magazine. No. 12, 3rd quarter 1990, pp. 18–22. * Bettina Zeugin: ''Katja Wulff.'' Published by IG Tanz Basel. Zwischen-Raum-Verlag, Basel 2001.

External links

*
Portrait photo of Katja Wulff

Katja Wulff
theaterwissenschaft.ch {{DEFAULTSORT:Wulff, Katja 1890 births 1992 deaths 20th-century German dancers Dance teachers German female dancers Modern dancers Expressionist dancers People from Hamburg Swiss female dancers German centenarians Women centenarians 20th-century German women

Life and career

See also

References

Literature

External links