Paula in Paris, Chicago, Bremen

On New Year’s Eve, Paula Modersohn-Becker arrived in Paris. In her early twenties and determined to become a painter, she was probably carrying her best clothes, some cash and drawing utensils in her luggage. Cell phone, credit card and rolling suitcase? Not a chance. A weird comparison comes to mind: The Netflix series Emily in Paris shows the extroverted Emily from Chicago, who quickly becomes an Instagram star with selfies in designer outfits without a clue about French culture and language. This intrepid, curious and positive Emily reminds me of the young Paula Becker, who embarked on a far more daring and real journey on the last day of the 19th century. Back in 1900, Paula was all about emancipation, self-realization and self-portraits. Today she is considered a superstar of painting. In 1927, she was the first woman to have her own museum dedicated to her, although she had already been dead for 20 years. In 2024, she will finally receive her first major retrospective in the USA. The Art Institute Chicago is showing over 50 of her works, including her most famous self-portrait.

Advertising banner for the Paula-Modersohn-Becker Museum in Böttcherstrasse in Bremen. It is the world's first museum dedicated to a female painter and was opened in 1927. It was commissioned by Kaffee HAG founder and patron Ludwig Roselius and built by sculptor Bernhard Hoetger / © Photo: Georg Berg
Advertising banner for the Paula-Modersohn-Becker Museum in Böttcherstrasse in Bremen / © Photo: Georg Berg

Paula in Chicago

Despite her significance for art history and her posthumous status as a feminist icon, Paula Modersohn-Becker has never been seen in a retrospective in the USA. This exhibition is the first comprehensive presentation of her work in this country. It shows the entire spectrum of her work, which ended tragically in 1907 at the age of just 31. She died of an embolism after the birth of her daughter Tille. The Art Institute Chicago is showing over 50 paintings, 15 large-format drawings and five etchings from October 12, 2024 to January 12, 2025. The retrospective was already on show in New York in summer 2024.

Guided tour of the Paula Modersohn-Becker Museum in Bremen. Visitors in front of the self-portrait that Paula Modersohn-Becker showed in Paris on her 6th wedding anniversary, May 25, 1906. It is the first nude self-portrait of a female painter in art history and is therefore of particular significance. The painting will be shown for the first time in 2024 with over 50 other of her works in a solo retrospective in New York and Chicago / © Photo: Georg Berg
Guided tour of the Paula Modersohn-Becker Museum in Bremen, shortly before the famous semi-nude is sent to the USA for its first retrospective / © Photo: Georg Berg

One of her most famous self-portraits shows Paula on her sixth wedding anniversary, May 25, 1906, half-naked with a hint of her pregnant belly. It is the first nude self-portrait of a female painter in art history. Paula painted it during her fourth stay in Paris, separated from her husband Otto Modersohn, while she was dealing with pregnancy and childbirth but was not pregnant herself. In Germany, her works can mainly be seen in Bremen and Worpswede.

Residence of Paula Modersohn-Becker and Otto Modersohn, where the artist couple lived together between 1901 and 1907. Parts of the interior have been reconstructed. Many paintings by the two artists are also on display. Paula Modersohn-Becker died in the house at the age of 31 after the birth of her daughter / © Photo: Georg Berg
The home of Paula Modersohn-Becker and Otto Modersohn, in which the artist couple lived together between 1901 and 1907. The interior has been partially reconstructed / © Photo: Georg Berg

Paula in Worpswede

A postcard showing one of her early self-portraits, painted in 1900 during her first trip to Paris, has been leaning against my computer for weeks. Her gaze is self-confident, her lips pursed. She’s wearing a dark blouse with a white tie. The typical light-colored houses of Paris can be seen in the background. The city seems to have her back. With her innovative style, which emphasized expression over representation, she became a pioneer of Expressionism. Among more than 700 paintings, around 1,400 drawings and eleven prints, her depictions of childhood, motherhood, pregnancy and old age stand out. Paula Modersohn-Becker is best known for her numerous self-portraits.

Sigrun Kaufmann in front of self-portraits in postcard format by Paula Modersohn-Becker. The Museum am Modersohn-Haus in Worpswede displays the collection of her husband Wolfgang Kaufmann. On display are old Worpswede masters, including works by Paula Modersohn-Becker and Otto Modersohn as well as Fritz Mackensen and Hans Vogeler / © Photo: Georg Berg
Sigrun Kaufmann in front of postcard-sized portraits by Paula Modersohn-Becker. The Museum am Modersohn-Haus in Worpswede exhibits Worpswede masters, including works by Paula Modersohn-Becker and Otto Modersohn as well as Fritz Mackensen and Hans Vogeler / © Photo: Georg Berg

As far as is known, she only sold five paintings during her lifetime, one to the poet Rainer Maria Rilke. The two met in Worpswede in 1900. It was not until 1906 that Rilke recognized her as an artist and wrote: “The strangest thing was to find Modersohn’s wife in a completely unique development of her painting, painting ruthlessly and straight ahead, things that are very Worpswedean and that no one has ever been able to see and paint before. And in this very unique way, strangely in touch with van Gogh and his direction.” In 1906, Rilke encouraged her in her desire to return to Paris. He bought one of her paintings to finance the trip. On this last trip to Paris, she visited the sculptor Bernhard Hoetger, who was enthusiastic about her work. His encouragement spurred her on to create a total of 90 paintings between 1906 and 1907. In 1906, she wrote to Rilke: “And now I don’t know how to write my name. I am no longer Modersohn and I am no longer Paula Becker, I am I, and I hope to become more and more so.”

Decorations with angel's head and flowers in the Zions Church in Worpswede. This is a joint work that Paula Modersohn-Becker and her friend and sculptor Clara Westhoff had to carry out as a punishment in 1900. The two women had rung the bells in the tower as a prank and terrified the Worpswede community / © Photo: Georg Berg
Decorations with angel’s head and flowers in the Zion Church in Worpswede. This is a joint work that Paula Modersohn-Becker and her friend and sculptor Clara Rilke-Westhoff had to carry out as a punishment in 1900. The two women had rung the bells in the tower as a prank and terrified the community of Worpswede / © Photo: Georg Berg

In November 1907, Paula Modersohn-Becker dies in Worpswede. Her grave is in the Zion Church cemetery. Traces of her time in the Worpswede artists’ colony can be found above all in her former home, which is now a museum, and also in the Zion Church.

Paula in Bremen

The Paula Modersohn-Becker Museum in Bremen is the world’s first museum dedicated to a female painter. It was commissioned by Kaffee HAG founder and patron Ludwig Roselius. It was built in 1927 by Bernhard Hoetger, who inspired her last creative phase in Paris in 1906. Works from all of the artist’s creative phases are on display in the expressionist brick building. A large part of her work is concentrated in Bremen. The museum’s collection, the holdings of the Paula Modersohn-Becker Foundation and the holdings of the Kunsthalle Bremen.

Staircase to the Paula Modersohn-Becker Museum in Böttcherstraße in Bremen. Works from all of the artist's creative phases are on display in the expressionist brick building. It is the world's first museum for a female painter and was opened in 1927 / © Photo: Georg Berg
Staircase to the Paula Modersohn-Becker Museum in Böttcherstraße in Bremen / © Photo: Georg Berg

More about the painter Paula Modersohn-Becker

Bust of Paula Modersohn-Becker. Created in 1899 by her friend, the sculptor Clara Rilke-Westhoff / © Photo: Georg Berg

Bust of Paula Modersohn-Becker. Created in 1899 by her friend, the sculptor Clara Rilke-Westhoff / © Photo: Georg Berg

The research was supported by Bremen Tourismus and Worpswede Touristik

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