MASTERPIECES FROM THE BEN URI COLLECTION
KURT SCHWITTERS (1887-1948)
UNTITLED: FÜR FRAU FRÄNKEL
1928
Collage
Signed inscribed 'für Frau Fränkel von Kurt Schwitters, 1928'
KURT SCHWITTERS
Kurt Schwitters’ artwork, Untitled: für Frau Fränkel (1928), exemplifies his pioneering 'Merz' concept a unique synthesis of collage, assemblage, and abstraction Employing fragments of printed matter, tickets, and textual snippets, Schwitters creates a harmonious interplay between typography, geometric arrangement, and
visual texture Central to the composition is a dynamic arrangement of overlapping papers bearing partial inscriptions referencing Paris and Strasbourg, which evoke a sense of transitory urban modernity The meticulous layering and angled positioning of these ephemeral materials create spatial tension and rhythm within the modest scale of the piece, underscoring Schwitters’ intention to transform discarded everyday fragments into aesthetic statements. His collage technique, deeply influenced by Dadaist principles, challenges traditional notions of artistic hierarchy by elevating mundane detritus into an artwork imbued with nuanced meaning This personal dedication, “für Frau Fränkel,” inscribed beneath the collage, adds an intimate dimension, reflecting the close-knit avant-garde community in which Schwitters operated As an exemplar of Schwitters’ Merz practice, this work embodies his commitment to integrating art with life, breaking down boundaries between artistic disciplines, and affirming the inherent aesthetic potential in the overlooked residues of everyday existence
Installation artist, painter and poet, Kurt Schwitters was born into an affluent family in Hanover, Germany on 20 June 1887 and studied art in Hanover and Dresden. He produced his first abstract paintings in 1917, associated with avant-garde circles and exhibited regularly at Galerie Der Sturm between his own idiosyncratic form of art: 'Merz' – a term derived from the name Kommerz-und-Privatbank' which appeared
on a scrap of newspaper – uniting all aspects of his prolific output: painting, collage, sculpture, architecture, poetry, drama, typography and happenings From 1923 his home in Hanover became his most complete Merzbau installation, its rooms filled with the detritus of everyday life alongside larger-scale architectural elements In 1930 he exhibited with Cercle et Carré in Paris and in 1931 joined the group Abstraction-Création
In January 1937 Schwitters fled to Norway, joining his son Ernst, and in December began a second Merzbau in Lysaker (destroyed by fire in 1951) In July in Munich the Nazis mounted the Entartete Kunst (Degenerate Art) exhibition, including four of Schwitters' works previously confiscated from German museums and the following year his work was also included in the Exhibition of Twentieth Century German Art at the New Burlington Galleries in London, organised as a riposte to the Nazi show In April 1940 Schwitters and Ernst fled for Britain, where they were both subsequently interned in June in Hutchinson Camp on the Isle of Man, known as the 'artists' camp' due to the high number of artist internees Schwitters painted portraits and landscapes, performed his poetry, created ephemeral Merz and participated in a camp exhibition (November 1940), also contributing drawing and short stories to the camp's newspaper, The Camp Almanac. After his release, Schwitters remained in London and contributed works to mixed exhibitions at Jack Bilbo's Modern Art Gallery in London (1942 and 1944), also holding there his only solo exhibition in England in December 1944, with a catalogue introduction by Herbert Read He also exhibited with the Artists' International Association and at exhibitions supporting aid to Russia and to China
A solo exhibition of 19 of his works was held at the Kunstmuseum, Bern in early 1945; in June that year he moved to the Lake District, where he lived until his death, participating in Artists' Society exhibitions in Grasmere. With the original Hannover Merzbau destroyed by allied bombing in 1943, Schwitters created a new Merzbau on a barn wall in Ambleside, funded by the Museum of Modern Art in New York Kurt Schwitters died in Kendal, Lake District, England on 8 January 1948 His work is now represented in many major European and international collections including the Ben Uri Collection, Tate, and MoMA, New York The Sprengel Museum, Hanover holds the Schwitters archive, and the most comprehensive documentation of his work and the Ambleside Merzbau has now been recreated by the Hatton Gallery, Newcastle University
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:
COLLECTION: https://benuri.org/collections/
BURU: https://www.buru.org.uk/
