Walter Gramatté (8 January 1897 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 ...

– 9 February 1929 in

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

) was a German

expressionist 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 ...

painter Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...

who specialized in magic realism. He worked in Berlin, Hamburg,

Hiddensee Hiddensee () is a car-free island in the Baltic Sea, located west of Germany's largest island, Rügen, on the German coast. The island has about 1,000 inhabitants. It was a holiday destination for East German tourists during German Democratic ...

and Barcelona. He often painted with a mystical view of nature. Many of his works were inspired by his experiences in the

First World 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 ...

and his illness.

Biography

His father was a baker. He enlisted at the beginning of the war, but his poor health often exempted him from combat duty. His studies were mostly at the Kunstgewerbeschule (Arts and Crafts school) in Berlin. He opened his own studio in 1917. In 1920, he married the Russian pianist, Sonia Fridman and became associated with

Die Brücke The Brücke (Bridge), also Künstlergruppe Brücke or KG Brücke was a group of German expressionist artists formed in Dresden in 1905. Founding members were Fritz Bleyl, Erich Heckel, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner and Karl Schmidt-Rottluff. Later memb ...

, a group of Expressionist artists. Despite his weak health, he travelled extensively, visiting France, Italy and Spain. He spent a great deal of time at the spa in Hiddensee and was hospitalized on several occasions, dying on 9 February 1929 of intestinal

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

. His grave monument was designed by his friend,

Karl Schmidt-Rottluff Karl Schmidt-Rottluff (Karl Schmidt until 1905; 1 December 1884 – 10 August 1976) was a German expressionist painter and printmaker; he was one of the four founders of the artist group Die Brücke. Life and work Schmidt-Rottluff was born in ...

. His works were classified as "

Degenerate art Degenerate art (german: Entartete Kunst was a term adopted in the 1920s by the Nazi Party in Germany to describe modern art. During the dictatorship of Adolf Hitler, German modernist art, including many works of internationally renowned artists, ...

" by the

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

government in 1933 and were not exhibited again until after the war. He was the inspiration for the painter "Catell", a character in the novel '' Die Stadt hinter dem Strom'' by

Hermann Kasack Hermann Robert Richard Eugen Kasack (24 July 1896 – 10 January 1966) was a German writer. He is best known for his novel '' Die Stadt hinter dem Strom'' (''The city beyond the river''). Kasack was a pioneer of using the medium broadcast for lit ...

Appreciation

His wife, Sonia, married again, to the art historian,

Ferdinand Eckhardt Ferdinand is a Germanic name composed of the elements "protection", "peace" (PIE "to love, to make peace") or alternatively "journey, travel", Proto-Germanic , abstract noun from root "to fare, travel" (PIE , "to lead, pass over"), and "co ...

(1902-1995), and lived in Canada as a renowned musician and composer. To remember her and her former husband, the Eckhardt-Gramatté Foundation was established in Winnipeg, Canada. Walter Gramatté's personal papers are preserved in the

German National Museum The Germanisches National Museum is a museum in Nuremberg, Germany. Founded in 1852, it houses a large collection of items relating to German culture and art extending from prehistoric times through to the present day. The Germanisches National ...

. A special exhibition of his paintings, titled ''Rediscovered: Walter Gramatté 1897-1929,'' took place in Hamburg's Ernst Barlach Haus from 26 October 2008 to 1 February 2009. This exhibition was organized by the Kirchner Museum in Davos, Switzerland and the Ernst Barlach Haus.

Selected paintings

File:Walter Gramatté Trinker 1922.jpg, The Drinker File:Walter Gramatté Selbstbildnis mit rotem Mond 1926.jpg, Self-portrait with Red Moon File:Gramatte Rosa Schapire.jpg, Portrait of

Rosa Schapire Rosa Schapire (9 September 1874 – 1 February 1954) was an Austria-Hungary, Austro-Hungarian-born art historian who lived in Germany and England. She was a model and art owner who gave early recognition to the Die Brücke group of artists. Li ...

File:Dreaming boy Gramatte.jpg, Dreaming Boy Gramatté's work is displayed in the

Germanisches Nationalmuseum The Germanisches National Museum is a museum in Nuremberg, Germany. Founded in 1852, it houses a large collection of items relating to German culture and art extending from prehistoric times through to the present day. The Germanisches National ...

(German National Museum) and the

Neue Nationalgalerie The Neue Nationalgalerie (New National Gallery) at the Kulturforum is a museum for modern art in Berlin, with its main focus on the early 20th century. It is part of the National Gallery of the Berlin State Museums. The museum building and its ...

, Berlin.

Literature

* Claus Pese: ''Mehr als nur Kunst. Das Archiv für Bildende Kunst im Germanischen Nationalmuseum,'' Ostfildern-Ruit 1998 (''Kulturgeschichtliche Spaziergänge im Germanischen Nationalmuseum'', Bd.2), S.74-77.

References

External links