The Life and Art of Clara Siewert
Born in Budy, Poland, Clara Siewert was a German Symbolist painter, graphic artist, and sculptor. Her early years were spent drawing, inspired by the magical themes of fairy tales, before she transitioned to sketching from nature. After graduating from a women's college, she sought professional instruction in Königsberg, though the Kunstakademie did not accept female students at that time, leading her to pursue private lessons. Her formal training included studies with the Swiss portraitist Karl Stauffer-Bern and Max Koner, eventually completing her studies around 1888/89 under Hugo Vogel.
Siewert became associated with the Berlin Secession and the Verein der Berliner Künstlerinnen. In the late 1890s, she settled in Berlin, establishing a studio near a location frequented by members of the Expressionist group, Die Brücke. Although she exhibited with the Berlin Secession starting in 1901, a break with the group in 1912 resulted in a period where her career faced significant setbacks, with limited exhibitions occurring between 1912 and 1936.
Later Years and Legacy
Following the death of her sister Elisabeth in 1930, Siewert experienced severe depression and poverty. Despite being a member of the Reichskulturkammer, she never joined the Nazi Party. In 1936, gallery owner Wolfgang Gurlitt organized a large exhibition of her work featuring 174 pieces, though it did not achieve critical success. During World War II, a bombing raid in 1943 destroyed her home and studio, resulting in the loss of a large portion of her work.
While it was once believed she died during the war, evidence suggests she died in Berlin from a heart ailment shortly after the end of the war. Her work remained largely forgotten until 2008, when a major retrospective titled "Clara Siewert - Between Dream and Reality" was presented at the Kunstforum Ostdeutsche Galerie in Regensburg. Many of her surviving works are now displayed there.
