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Wolf Hamburger Collection

 Collection
Identifier: LBIJER 911

Scope and Contents

The file contains various materials pertaining to the artist Wolf Hamburger and comprises three series and 17 folders. The collection includes original and copies of work by Wolf, family correspondences and secondary materials, collected by his family.

Dates

  • Creation: 1914-1996

Creator

Language of Materials

The collection is in German, English, Spanish and Hebrew.

Conditions Governing Access

The collection has been digitized. Folder 17 is not available due to copyrights.

Conditions Governing Use

This collection is open to researchers.

Biographical / Historical

Wolf (Wolfgang) Hamburger was born to Kurt Natan-Hamburger and Hertha Levin in Berlin in January 26, 1917, brother to Friedel (born 1919) and Peter (born 1922). His talent was recognized early on, but he received no formal art education. Given the political situation in Germany and Kurt's Zionist leanings, the family migrated to Palestine in May 1933 and settled in Tel Aviv. Wolf retuned to Berlin the following year and in 1935 moved to Paris, where he joined a group of communist artists and began to publish political cartoons in the press. In February 1937 he moved to Barcelona in order to contribute to the propaganda activity of Communist and anarchist groups during the Spanish civil war. In May 1937 he returned to Paris and in October 1938 married Anne Wittmann (born 1905). The couple tried, unsuccessfully, to obtain a visa to the USA or South America and eventually, despite their initial reservations, traveled to Palestine in May 1939 due to Anne's illness. After she recovered, in July of that year, they returned to Paris. In September Wolf was imprisoned in a French internment camp. On January 26, 1940, after being released from the camp, Wolf and Anne committed suicide in their room at the George V hotel in Paris.

Extent

17 Folders

Abstract

The file contains various materials pertaining to the artist Wolf Hamburger.

Arrangement

This collection is arranged in 3 series.

  1. Series I: Works by Wolf Hamburger; undated, 1931-1982
  2. Series II: Wolf Hamburger’s correspondence and other materials pertaining to his family; 1914-1992
  3. Series III: Secondary materials pertaining to Wolf Hamburger, collected by his family; 1982-1996
Author
Processed by LBI staff
Date
© 2020
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Part of the Leo Baeck Institute Repository

Contact:
15 West 16th Street
New York NY 10011 United States