The Paula Modersohn-Becker Museum in

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state consis ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, is the first museum in the world devoted to a female artist. Modersohn-Becker (1876–1907) was one of the most important early

Expressionists 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 rad ...

, and the museum features key works from each of her creative periods.

History

Construction of the museum was commissioned by the businessman and art patron

Ludwig Roselius Ludwig Roselius (2 June 1874 – 15 May 1943) was a German coffee merchant and founder of the company Kaffee HAG. He was born in Bremen and is credited with the development of commercial decaffeination of coffee. As a patron, he supported arti ...

, who assigned the sculptor, craftsman and architect

Bernhard Hoetger Bernhard Hoetger (4 May 1874 in Dortmund – 18 July 1949 in Interlaken) was a German sculptor, painter and handicrafts artist of the Expressionist movement. Life Hoetger was the son of a Dortmund blacksmith, he studied sculpture in Detmold from ...

to design it. Hoetger had become acquainted with Modersohn-Becker while in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, and created a unique Brick Expressionist building in her memory. Opened in 1927, the museum now counts as one of the key works of expressionist architecture in Germany. The collection features works covering the artist's entire career, from the early pictures of her training years 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 constitue ...

to the paintings she created in Paris in 1906-07, in which she most fully realised her artistic vision. In 1935 local Nazis attacked the art and architecture of the Paula Modersohn-Becker Museum. Ludwig Roselius ignored this but Hitler denounced the art at the September 1936 Nuremberg NSDAP rally and Roselius contemplated suicide. Barbara Goette intervened on Roselius' behalf and Hitler declared the Böttcherstrasse as a monument of 'degenerate art'; the offensive works, including the Paula Modersohn-Becker Museum would not have to be demolished. In exchange Ludwig Roselius pumped capital into Focke-Wulf aircraft company. Important paintings and drawings from Roselius's collection are supplemented by works on loan from the Paula Modersohn-Becker Foundation. Besides Paula's works, the museum also owns the most extensive collection of works by Bernhard Hoetger (1874–1949). The rooms that he designed are now used for special exhibitions of classic modern art. Since 1973, the building has been listed under the monument protection act. The museum is run by the ''Böttcherstraße GmbH'' company, named after its location on the architecturally significant

Böttcherstraße Böttcherstraße is a street in the historic centre of Bremen, Germany. Only about 100 m (330 ft) long, it is famous for its unusual architecture and ranks among the city's main cultural landmarks and visitor attractions. Most of its bui ...

. Since 2005,

Jenny Holzer Jenny Holzer (born July 29, 1950) is an American neo-conceptual artist, based in Hoosick, New York. The main focus of her work is the delivery of words and ideas in public spaces and includes large-scale installations, advertising billboards, ...

's electronic homage ''For Paula Modersohn-Becker'' has been permanently installed in the stairwell.Jenny Holzer
Museum website.

Notes

External links

Paula Modersohn-Becker Museum websitePaula Modersohn-Becker Museum
within

* {{Authority control Museums in Bremen (city) Brick Expressionism Art museums and galleries in Germany Modern art museums in Germany Art museums established in 1927 Modersohn-Becker 1927 establishments in Germany Modersohn-Becker Paula Modersohn-Becker

History

See also

Notes

External links