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Exhibiting Change Through Exchange: Britain and Germany in the Post-War Decade

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Beziehungsanalysen. Bildende Künste in Westdeutschland nach 1945

Part of the book series: Kunst und Gesellschaft ((KUGE))

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Abstract

With the complex and rapidly shifting political and cultural background of the decade following the end of World War II in mind, this article considers the role of officially-supported art exhibitions of British art in Germany and German art in Britain during this period. Within the context of continuing British control and military presence in parts of West Germany, it briefly discusses the varying reception in Germany of British Council exhibitions of contemporary British art in the late 1940s/early 1950s. It then goes on to examine in detail two exhibitions of German art shown in Britain, in 1949–1950 (Modern German Prints and Drawings, touring exhibition) and 1956 (A Hundred Years of German Painting 1850–1950, Tate Gallery). This includes consideration of what account of German art was being offered to the British exhibition-going public, an analysis of the underlying reasons for this, and of the networks of museum personnel and art historians who facilitated this.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Report by MFA&A Officer, Hamburg, period 16–30 Sept 45, p. 5.

  2. 2.

    TNA (The National Archives):PRO (Public Records Office) File BW32/6, Report from Punnett to Somerville 7 Oct 48 and Somerville internal report 14 Oct 48.

  3. 3.

    TNA:PRO File BW32/6, Report from Punnett to Somerville 7 Oct 48.

  4. 4.

    Ibid.

  5. 5.

    TNA:PRO File BW 32/19, British Council memo from Liaison Officer, Germany to Director, Fine Arts Department 23 Jun 50.

  6. 6.

    Ibid.

  7. 7.

    Historisches Archiv Hamburger Kunsthalle. Heise File V. Letter from Heise to Hanfstaengl 3 Sep 47.

  8. 8.

    Historisches Archiv Hamburger Kunsthalle. Heise File VIII. Correspondence between Haftmann and Heise, 9 and 15 Dec 1948.

  9. 9.

    Historisches Archiv Hamburger Kunsthalle. File ‘Ausstellung deutscher Graphik in London u. a. 1949–1950’. Letter from Heise to Read 19 Sep 49.

  10. 10.

    Historisches Archiv Hamburger Kunsthalle. File ‘Ausstellung deutscher Graphik in London u. a. 1949–1950’. Letters from Heise to Phillips and James 19 Sep 49.

  11. 11.

    James, P. (1949): ‘Foreword’. Modern German Prints and Drawings. Exh Cat, p. 1.

  12. 12.

    Heise, C.G. (1949): ‘Introduction’. Modern German Prints and Drawings. Exh Cat, p. 3.

  13. 13.

    Western Daily Press. 12 Jan 50.

  14. 14.

    The principal sources are Heise Correspondence: Historisches Archiv Hamburger Kunsthalle. File VIII. And: Tate Archive. Minutes of Trustee Meetings. File TG 92/123/1 ‘Exhibitions: A Hundred Years of German Painting 1850–1950, 1956’.

  15. 15.

    Historisches Archiv Hamburger Kunsthalle. Heise File VIII. Letter from Gürster to Heise, 8 Nov 54.

  16. 16.

    Tate Archive, Tate Britain. Tate Exhibitions: Tate Public Records: TG 92/123/1. Letter from Gürster to Rothenstein 26 Jul 54 in file Correspondence: A Hundred Years of German Painting. 1850–1950 (25 Apr-10 Jun 1950).

  17. 17.

    Tate Archive, Tate Britain. Tate Exhibitions: Tate Public Records: TG 92/123/1. Letter from Rothenstein to Gürster 27 Jul 54 in file Correspondence: A Hundred Years of German Painting. 1850–1950 (25 Apr-10 Jun 1950).

  18. 18.

    Tate Archive, Tate Britain. Tate Exhibitions: Tate Public Records: TG 92/123/1. Letter from Heise to Rothenstein 16 Nov 54 with English translation attached in file Correspondence: A Hundred Years of German Painting. 1850–1950 (25 Apr-10 Jun 1950).

  19. 19.

    Tate Archive, Tate Britain. Tate Exhibitions: Tate Public Records: TG 92/123/1. Letter from Rothenstein to Heise 1 Dec 54 in file Correspondence: A Hundred Years of German Painting. 1850–1950 (25 Apr-10 Jun 1950).

  20. 20.

    Historisches Archiv Hamburger Kunsthalle. Exhibition file. Letter from Gürster to Henzen 31 May 55.

  21. 21.

    Historisches Archiv Hamburger Kunsthalle. Exhibition file. Letter from von Herwarth to Henzen 15 Aug 55.

  22. 22.

    Historisches Archiv Hamburger Kunsthalle. Exhibition file. Letter from Gürster to Henzen 14 Jun 55.

  23. 23.

    Documenta. Kunst des XX. Jahrhunderts. 1955, Exh Cat numbers 40 (Farbtafel IV), 382 (Farbtafel I), 426 (Tafel 10) and 569

  24. 24.

    Rothenstein, John (1956): ‘Foreword’, A Hundred Years of German Painting 1850–1950. Exh Cat, p. 3.

  25. 25.

    Kerr 1956, p. 65.

  26. 26.

    Historisches Archiv Hamburger Kunsthalle. Exhibition file. Letter from Henzen to Nay, 17 Jan 56.

  27. 27.

    Kerr 1956, p. 71.

  28. 28.

    Hess 1956, p. 203.

  29. 29.

    Hess 1956, p. 204.

References

  • A Hundred Years of German Painting. 1956. Exhibition Catalogue Christiansdruck Hamburg.

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  • Documenta. 1955. Kunst des XX. Jahrhunderts. München: Prestel.

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  • Hess, Hans. 1956. Hundred years of German painting 1850–1950. Burlington Magazine, June 1956. pp. 203–204.

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  • Kerr, John O’Connell. 1956. German painting 1850–1950. The Studio, September 1956, 65–72.

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  • Moore, Henry. 1950. Exhibition catalogue. The British Council London (German edition).

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  • The Arts Council of Great Britain and the Institute of Contemporary Arts. 1949. Modern German prints and drawings 1949. Exhibition Catalogue. London: The Arts Council of Great Britain.

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Sources

  • Historisches Archiv Hamburger Kunsthalle. File ‘Ausstellung deutscher Graphik in London u. a. 1949–1950’.

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  • Historisches Archiv Hamburger Kunsthalle. Exhibition file.

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  • Historisches Archiv Hamburger Kunsthalle. Heise File V.

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  • Historisches Archiv Hamburger Kunsthalle. Heise File VIII.

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  • Tate Archive. Tate Britain. Tate exhibitions: Tate public records. Minutes of Trustee Meetings. File TG 92/123/1.

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  • TNA:PRO. File BW32/6.

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  • TNA:PRO. File BW 32/19.

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  • Western Daily Press. 12 Jan 1950.

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Acknowledgements

The writer would like to express her thanks to The Open University’s Research Associate scheme for support with research into the two UK exhibitions, and to thank the Historisches Archiv Hamburger Kunsthalle and the Tate Archive for the use of their facilities in carrying out this research. Material on the British Council exhibitions formed part of her doctoral thesis at the University of East London.

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  1. Gloucester, UK

    Veronica Davies

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  1. Veronica Davies
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Correspondence to Veronica Davies .

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  1. TU Dresden, Germany

    Gerhard Panzer

  2. TU Dresden, Germany

    Franziska Völz

  3. TU Dresden, Germany

    Karl-Siegbert Rehberg

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Davies, V. (2015). Exhibiting Change Through Exchange: Britain and Germany in the Post-War Decade. In: Panzer, G., Völz, F., Rehberg, KS. (eds) Beziehungsanalysen. Bildende Künste in Westdeutschland nach 1945. Kunst und Gesellschaft. Springer VS, Wiesbaden. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-02917-3_12

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-02917-3_12

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