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Walter Womacka
Womacka (2006)
Born(1925-12-22)December 22, 1925
Horní Jiřetín, Czechoslovakia
DiedSeptember 18, 2010(2010-09-18) (aged 84)
Berlin, Germany
Burial placeZentralfriedhof Friedrichsfelde
EmployerWeißensee Academy of Art Berlin (1968–1988)

Walter Womacka (22 December 1925 – 18 September 2010) was a German Socialist Realist artist. His work was pioneering early German Democratic Republic (GDR) aesthetics.

Biography

Walter Womacka was born on 22 December 1925 in Horní Jiřetín, Czechoslovakia.[1] He lived in East Berlin for most of his life. During World War II he did military service.[2] Between 1946 and 1951, he studied art in Braunschweig, Weimar, and Dresden in Germany.[2]

In 1954, he moved back to Berlin.[2] Womacka was the head of the Weißensee Academy of Art Berlin (former German name: Hochschule für Bildende und Angewandte Kunst Berlin-Weißensee), from 1968 until 1988.[1] He had many notable students, including Georg Baselitz.[2]

In 1962, he created his most famous work, the oil painting "Am Strand", in which his daughter and younger brother were models.[2] This work was a best selling reproduction, it was also used for German postage stamps.[3][2][4]

In the post-war rebuilding of Berlin, he designed many large public artworks, including stained glass windows using the gemmail technique and large external murals in mosaic. These artworks showing the socialist ideal of "ordinary people" contributing to society are found decorating the buildings of government departments and factories. The Haus des Lehrers ("House of Teachers"- Education Department) on Alexanderplatz in the centre of East Berlin is decorated with a frieze showing the benefits of education.[4] This work was fully restored between 2002 and 2004 after many years of neglect.[5]

Womacka died in Berlin, Germany on 18 September 2010.[6] He is buried in Zentralfriedhof Friedrichsfelde in Berlin.

natural stone mosaic (1964) at the Haus des Lehrers (English: House of the Teacher), Berlin-Mitte

Works

Mosaic in Eisenhüttenstadt, Germany

Architecture-related mural work

Awards

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Sandford, John (2013). Encyclopedia of Contemporary German Culture. Routledge. p. 1391. ISBN 9781136816109.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g ""Am Strand" zu Ulbrichts 70. Geburtstag". DDR Museum (in German). 18 June 2015. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  3. ^ a b Buchmann, Sabeth (December 2020). "Sabeth Buchmann on Lucy McKenzie". Artforum.com. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  4. ^ a b c "Socialist Art Comes Full Circle". Deutsche Welle (dw). 13 May 2002. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  5. ^ "Haus des Lehrers". emporis.com (in German). Archived from the original on 28 January 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2021.
  6. ^ "Walter Womacka: East German painter who remained loyal to communism". The Independent. 23 October 2011. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  7. ^ Bazin, Jerome; Glatigny, Pascal Dubourg; Piotrowski, Piotr (1 March 2016). Art beyond Borders: Artistic Exchange in Communist Europe (1945-1989). Central European University Press. p. 88. ISBN 978-963-386-083-0.
  8. ^ "Walter Womacka. Erika Steinführer I. 1980 - 1981". www.bildatlas-ddr-kunst.de (in German). Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  9. ^ "Walter Womacka: Der Mensch überwindet Zeit und Raum, 1971". museum-der-1000-orte.de (in German). Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  10. ^ "DDR-Architektur - von Arbeiterpalästen und potemkinschen Dörfern". Deutsche Welle (dw) (in German). 18 October 2019. Retrieved 8 July 2021.

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