Willi Baumeister facts for kids

An illustration of Willi Baumeister by Emil Stumpp.

Willi Baumeister (born January 22, 1889 – died August 31, 1955) was a famous German painter. He also worked as a scenic designer, taught art, and designed fonts (a typographer). His art was even shown in competitions at the 1928 Summer Olympics and the 1932 Summer Olympics.

Life of Willi Baumeister

Early Life and Education

Willi Baumeister was born in Stuttgart, Germany, in 1889. From 1905 to 1907, he trained to be a decorative painter in his hometown. After this, he served in the military for about a year.

While learning his trade, Willi also started studying art. He attended the Stuttgart Art Academy from 1905 to 1906. He took drawing classes and extra lessons to improve his skills. In 1907, he finished his training as a painter.

Becoming an Artist

After his military service, Baumeister went back to the art academy. His first teacher thought he wasn't talented enough. So, he switched to a class taught by Adolf Hölzel, where he studied until 1912. There, he met his good friend, Oskar Schlemmer.

In 1911, Baumeister visited Paris for the first time. The next year, he had a successful art show in Zurich. In 1913, he showed his work at a big art event in Berlin called the Erster Deutscher Herbstsalon. Here, he met the famous painter Franz Marc.

In 1914, Baumeister had his first solo art show in Stuttgart. That same year, he, Schlemmer, and Herman Stenner were asked to paint murals for an exhibition in Cologne. Before joining the army in 1914, Baumeister traveled to Amsterdam, London, and Paris.

War and New Connections

During World War I, Baumeister met other artists. In 1915, he met painter Oskar Kokoschka and architect Adolf Loos in Vienna. In 1916, his art was part of an exhibition called "Hölzel and his Circle."

In 1918, before leaving the army, he and Oskar Schlemmer had an exhibition together. Baumeister and Schlemmer tried to get Paul Klee, another famous artist, to teach at the Stuttgart Academy. Klee was willing, but the Academy said no. In 1919, Baumeister joined the "November Group," an important group of German artists.

Growing Recognition

In 1919, Baumeister and Schlemmer also helped start an artist group called Üecht in Stuttgart. He left this group in 1921. That same year, he designed his first stage set for a play, and he would design seventeen more later.

By 1920, Baumeister had finished his art studies and became a full-time artist. His work was shown in cities like Berlin, Dresden, and Hagen. His fame grew internationally. In 1922, he had a joint exhibition with French artist Fernand Léger in Berlin.

During these years, Baumeister became friends with many important artists. These included Paul Klee, Léger, Le Corbusier, and Michel Seuphor. In 1924, some of his art was shown in Moscow. In 1925, he took part in an exhibition in Paris called "Art Today." Besides his fine art, he also designed advertisements for companies like Bosch.

Teaching and Family Life

In 1926, Baumeister married painter Margarete Oehm. He was invited to show his art in a big exhibition in New York. The next year, he had a solo show in Paris. He also had his own room at a large exhibition in Berlin, where he met Kasimir Malevich.

In 1927, Baumeister started teaching at the Frankfurt School of Applied Arts, which later became the Städelschule. From 1928, he taught classes in commercial art, typography, and textile printing. His daughter was born that year. In 1929, he turned down a teaching job at the famous Bauhaus school.

Baumeister joined several art groups, including "Circle of New Commercial Designers" and "Cercle et Carré" (Circle and Square). In 1930, he won the Württemberg State Prize for his painting "Line Figure." He also became a member of the "Abstraction-Création" group in Paris.

Challenges During the Nazi Era

When the National Socialists (Nazis) came to power in Germany, Baumeister faced difficulties. On March 31, 1933, he was fired from his teaching job at the Städel art school. To earn money, he mainly worked on commercial art. Despite this, he still managed to travel to Switzerland, Italy, and France. His second daughter was born that same year.

In 1936, he started working for a varnish factory owned by Dr. Kurt Herberts in Wuppertal. This job helped protect him from the Nazis. Other artists who were also disliked by the Nazi regime worked there, including Oskar Schlemmer. In 1937, five of Baumeister's artworks were shown in the Nazi exhibition called Entartete Kunst (Degenerate art), which displayed art the Nazis considered "bad."

Until 1941, Baumeister could still show his art in other European countries. But then, the National Arts Chamber banned his paintings and exhibitions. Even with the ban and constant watch, he continued to work at the factory and create his art. In 1943, his house in Stuttgart was destroyed by a bomb. He moved with his family to Urach in the Swabian Alps.

Post-War Success and Legacy

After World War II ended in 1945, Baumeister finished his book, Das Unbekannte in der Kunst (The Unknown in Art). It was published in 1947. In 1946, he got a teaching job at the Stuttgart Academy of Arts. He started exhibiting his art again in 1947.

In 1949, he helped start a group called Gegenstandlose (The Group of Nonrepresentational Artists). Their first exhibition, "ZEN 49," was in 1950. Here, Baumeister met artists like Fritz Winter and Ernst Wilhelm Nay. They all worked to create new art in Germany after the war and dictatorship. In 1950, Baumeister defended modern art in a public discussion.

Until his death in 1955, Baumeister was at the peak of his art career. He participated in many important exhibitions around the world. These included the Venice Biennale in 1948 and the São Paulo Biennale in Brazil in 1951, where he won a prize for his painting "Cosmic Gesture." His art was also shown at the Guggenheim Museum in New York in 1953.

In 1955, Willi Baumeister retired from the Stuttgart Art Academy. He still had a teaching contract for the next semester. On August 31, 1955, he passed away in his studio in Stuttgart, with a paintbrush in his hand.

Willi Baumeister's Artworks

Exploring Art Styles

Baumeister's first exhibition was in 1910. He showed paintings that looked like impressionism. But he was most interested in cubism and the work of Paul Cézanne. These styles influenced his art until the late 1920s.

His early paintings slowly became more abstract and geometric. They focused on shapes and lost their sense of deep space. Baumeister explored how shapes and colors worked together. His teacher, Adolf Hölzel, once told him, "Out of all of us, you will be the one who will achieve the most." It's interesting that his work didn't show much of the German art style called expressionism.

After World War I, Baumeister continued to develop his art. His paintings still had some recognizable figures, but the shapes became more geometric. He also started to separate shapes from their usual colors. He created different series of works, like relief-like wall pictures and paintings about sports. He explored the relationship between real things and how they are shown in art.

Around this time, he also started creating nonrepresentational art. This means art that doesn't show real objects. These works focused on geometric shapes and how they related to each other on the canvas. Baumeister also exchanged ideas with other artists, which helped his art grow.

Art During Difficult Times

By the late 1920s, the shapes in Baumeister's paintings became softer and more organic. He moved away from simple circles, triangles, and squares. This change was partly because he was fascinated by prehistoric and ancient paintings.

Baumeister studied old cave paintings and used their symbols and figures in his own art. He saw these as a universal language from the past. He even started painting with "oil on sand on canvas" around 1933. This made his paintings look and feel like the cave paintings he admired. He collected prehistoric tools and sculptures. He also studied cliff drawings found in Rhodesia.

These ancient artworks inspired him to use very simple, organic shapes in his "ideograms," which he started around 1937. In these works, he used a unique set of signs. He saw these signs as symbols for nature's laws, how things grow, and human life.

Baumeister's art continued to develop even after he lost his teaching job in 1933. He kept painting despite facing political problems and money troubles. Even after 1941, when he was banned from exhibiting, his work continued to evolve. His job at the varnish factory allowed him to research old and new painting techniques. This helped him learn more about prehistoric cave painting methods.

He also studied Goethe's ideas about plant forms. This led to his "eidos pictures" (eidos means "idea"). Unlike his ideograms, these paintings were rich in color and variety. They featured organic forms that looked like simple plants and animals. These paintings had titles like "Rock Garden," "Eidos," or "Primordial Vegetable."

Later Works and Recognition

Baumeister was a tireless researcher and collector. He owned African sculptures, which he saw as universal images of life, growth, and human existence. Their shapes and forms influenced his art in the early 1940s. At first, these works had limited colors, like "African Tale" (1942). Over time, they became more colorful and complex, such as "Owambo" (1944–1948). His titles and art also showed his interest in other old cultures, like Latin American ones. Examples include "Peruvian Wall" (1946) and "Aztec Couple" (1948).

Another example of his search for art's "foundations" was his illustrations for the Gilgamesh Epic. This is one of the oldest stories ever written. Baumeister used his own unique symbols and images to illustrate the story, creating a unified series of artworks. He also illustrated parts of the Bible, like stories about Saul and Esther, and William Shakespeare's play The Tempest.

Baumeister created a very personal and impressive visual language. His art was unique in Germany right after 1945. He received a lot of recognition both in Germany and internationally. His artistic development continued. He combined different phases of his art into new paintings. Some of these works, like "Blue Movement" (1950), had a basic structure that reminded people of landscapes.

He also created very dense abstract paintings that started from a central shape. These works made him known as an outstanding "nonrepresentationalist." Paintings like "ARU 2" (1955) became very famous and were strongly linked to his name. Even in the year he died, he was still creating diverse and colorful artworks.

Major Exhibitions

• 1910 Württembergischer Kunstverein (as guest of an exhibition of French painters), Stuttgart, Germany
• 1927 Galerie d’Art Contemporain, Paris, France
• 1930 Venice Biennale, Italy
• 1931 Kunstverein Frankfurt am Main, Germany
• 1935 Galeria Milione, Milan, Italy
• 1939 Galerie Jeanne Bucher, Paris, France
• 1949 Galerie Jeanne Bucher, Paris, France
• 1950 Zen 49, Central Collecting Point, Munich, Germany
• 1951 Deutscher Künstlerbund, Hochschule für Bildende Künste, Berlin, Germany
• 1953 Guggenheim Museum, New York, USA
• 1954 Württembergischer Kunstverein, Stuttgart, Germany
• 1955 documenta 1, Kassel, Germany
• 1955 Cercle Volnay, Paris, France
• 1959 documenta II, Kassel, Germany
• 1964 documenta III, Kassel, Germany
• 1965 Wallraf-Richartz-Museum, Cologne, Germany
• 1975 Willi Baumeister: Lithographien und Radierungen, gedruckt von Erich Mönch, State Academy of Fine Arts Stuttgart
• 1979 Willi Baumeister: 1945–1955, Württembergischer Kunstverein, Stuttgart
• 1979 Hommage à Baumeister, State Academy of Fine Arts Stuttgart
• 1989 Nationalgalerie Berlin, Germany
• 1989 Willi Baumeister: Typographie und Reklamegestaltung, State Academy of Fine Arts Stuttgart (and in 1990 Deutscher Werkbund, Frankfurt am Main)
• 1999 Willi Baumeister et la France, Musée d’Unterlinden, Colmar, France
• 2000 Musée d’Art Moderne, Saint Etienne, France
• 2003 Museo Thyssen Bornemisza, Madrid, Spain
• 2004 Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus, Munich, Germany
• 2004 Willi Baumeister – Karl Hofer: Begegnung der Bilder, Museum der bildenden Künste, Leipzig, Germany
• 2005 Bucerius Kunst Forum, Hamburg, Germany
• 2005 Die Frankfurter Jahre 1928–1933, Museum Giersch, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
• 2005 Westfälisches Landesmuseum für Kunst- und Kulturgeschichte, Münster, Germany
• 2006 Von der Heydt-Museum, Wuppertal, Germany
• 2007 Kunstmuseum Stuttgart, Germany

Books About Willi Baumeister

• Westerdahl, Eduardo. Willi Baumeister. Tenerife: Ediciones Gaceta de Arte, 1934
• Baumeister, Willi. Das Unbekannte in der Kunst. Stuttgart, 1947. (English: The Unknown in Art. Translated by Joann M. Skrypzak and with an essay by Tobias Hoffmann. Willi Baumeister Stiftung, Stuttgart, 2013 ISBN: 978-3-8442-5100-5)
• Grohmann, Will. Willi Baumeister: Leben und Werk. Cologne, 1963.
• Kermer, Wolfgang: Einige Aspekte der Kunstlehre Willi Baumeisters. In: 175 Jahre Friedrich-Eugens-Gymnasium Stuttgart. Stuttgart: Belser, 1971, p. 126-152
• Haftmann, Werner. "Gilgamesch - Einführung." In: Willi Baumeister, Gilgamesch, 5-15. Cologne, 1976.
• Kermer, Wolfgang: Hommage à Baumeister: Klaus Bendixen, Karl Bohrmann, Peter Brüning, Bruno Diemer, Peter Grau, Klaus Jürgen-Fischer, Emil Kiess, Eduard Micus, Herbert Schneider, Peter Schubert, Friedrich Seitz, Ludwig Wilding. Exh. cat. Stuttgart: Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden Künste Stuttgart, 1979
• Kermer, Wolfgang: Zur Kunstlehre Baumeisters: ein Vorschlag Baumeisters zur Reform des künstlerischen Elementarunterrichts aus dem Jahre 1949. Die Studierenden Willi Baumeisters an der Staatlichen Akademie der bildenden Künste Stuttgart 1946–1955. Verzeichnis der ″Didaktischen Tafeln″. Exhib. cat. Willi Baumeister: 1945–1955, Württembergischer Kunstverein Stuttgart, Cantz, Stuttgart 1979, pp 129–134, 147.
• Ponert, Dietmar J. Willi Baumeister - Werkverzeichnis der Zeichnungen, Gouachen und Collagen. Dietmar J. Ponert in collaboration with Felicitas Karg-Baumeister. Cologne: DuMont, 1988.
• Kermer, Wolfgang: Willi Baumeister - Typographie und Reklamegestaltung. Exh. cat. Stuttgart: Edition Cantz, 1989 ISBN: 3-89322-145-X
• Baumeister, Schlemmer und die Üecht-Gruppe: Stuttgarter Avantgarde 1919. Exh. cat. Stuttgart: Hugo Matthaes, 1989.
• Willi Baumeister, Lithographien / Serigraphien: 55 Werke der Zeit 1919 bis 1964. Galerie Schlichtenmaier, cat. no. 109. Grafenau: Galerie Schlichtenmaier, 1991
• Bruns, Jörg Heiko Willi Baumeister. Dresden: Verlag der Kunst, 1991.
• Kermer, Wolfgang: Der schöpferische Winkel: Willi Baumeisters pädagogische Tätigkeit. Ostfildern-Ruit: Edition Cantz, 1992 (Beiträge zur Geschichte der Staatlichen Akademie der Bildenden Künste Stuttgart [de] / ed. Wolfgang Kermer; 7) ISBN: 3-89322-420-3
• Boehm, Gottfried. Willi Baumeister. Stuttgart: Hatje, 1995
• Kermer, Wolfgang (ed.): Aus Willi Baumeisters Tagebüchern: Erinnerungen an Otto Meyer-Amden, Adolf Hölzel, Paul Klee, Karl Konrad Düssel und Oskar Schlemmer. Mit ergänzenden Schriften und Briefen von Willi Baumeister. Ostfildern-Ruit: Edition Cantz, 1996 (Beiträge zur Geschichte der Staatlichen Akademie der Bildenden Künste Stuttgart / ed. Wolfgang Kermer; 8) ISBN: 3-89322-421-1
• Beye, Peter, and Felicitas Baumeister. Willi Baumeister: Werkkatalog der Gemälde. Ostfildern-Ruit: Hatje Cantz, 2002.
• Kermer, Wolfgang. Willi Baumeister und die Werkbund-Ausstellung "Die Wohnung" Stuttgart 1927. Stuttgart: Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden Künste Stuttgart, 2003 (Beiträge zur Geschichte der Staatlichen Akademie der Bildenden Künste Stuttgart / ed. Wolfgang Kermer; 11) ISBN: 3-931485-55-2
• Spielmann, Heinz, and Felicitas Baumeister. Willi Baumeister: Werkkatalog der Druckgraphik. Ostfildern-Ruit: Hatje Cantz, 2005.
• Willi Baumeister: Figuren und Zeichen. Exh. cat. Hamburg, Münster, Wuppertal: Hatje Cantz, 2005.
• Schürle, Wolfgang, and Nicholas J. Conard, eds. Zwei Weltalter. Eiszeitkunst und die Bildwelt Willi Baumeisters. Ostfildern-Ruit: Hatje Cantz, 2005.
• Kermer, Wolfgang (ed.): Über Baumeister: der Künstler und Lehrer im Urteil seiner Schüler. Stuttgart: Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden Künste Stuttgart, 2006 WerkstattReihe [de] / [Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden Künste Stuttgart], ed. Wolfgang Kermer; 15) ISBN: 3-931485-77-3
• Im Rampenlicht: Baumeister als Bühnenbildner. Exh. cat. Munich and Berlin: Deutscher Kunstverlag, 2007, ISBN: 978-3-422-06775-2
• Chametzky, Peter. Objects as History in Twentieth-Century German Art: Beckmann to Beuys. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2010.ISBN: 978-0-520-26042-9

What Others Said About Willi Baumeister

• "In my eyes, the name Baumeister takes an extremely important place among those of modern German artists." (Fernand Léger, 1949)
• "He was the most European of German painters." (Will Grohmann, 1959)
• "Willi Baumeister's art belongs to the healthy, natural, appealing appearances." (Wassily Kandinsky, 1935)
• "You are going to have a future, with certainty." (Le Corbusier to Baumeister, 1931)

See also

In Spanish: Willi Baumeister para niños

• List of German painters