Under the Spell of the Berlin Sturm
Éva Bajkay

Notes

1 He first travelled to Berlin in 1907-1908 when he became acquainted with the theory of dimensions.See: Irén LUKÁSZ: Mattis Teutsch. Aluta. Yearbook of the theory of Sepsiszentgyörgy Museum, 1969, p.328. He turned his attention to the colours which were on view in the Berlin Mattis exhibition. See: Mircea DEAC:Mattis Teutsch si realismul constructiv – und der konstruktive Realismus. Cluj-Napoca, 1985.59.

2 Brühl, Georg. Herwarth Walden und “Der Sturm.” Leipzig: 1983.

3 Der Sturm changed its format in the 1920s from newspaper-like A2 to the magazine-like A4. See: Raabe, Paul. “Repertorium der Zeitschriften, Jahrbücher, Anthologien, Sammlungen Schriftenreihen und Almanache 1910-1921.“ Die Zeitschriften und Sammlungen des literatischen Expressionismus. Stuttgart, 1964. pp.25-29

4 For the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy a separate sales office was in charge of circulation. The third issue, for instance, sold 1,200 copies in Vienna.

5 “Ende Januar reisen wir nach Wien und Budapest... In Budapest waren wir eine Woche, sahen Ausstellungen und trafen Künstler.” Nell Walden. “Aus meinen Erinnerungen an Herwarth Walden und die ’Sturmzeit’.” Der Sturm. Ein Erinnerungsbuch an Herwarth Walden und die Künstler aus dem Sturmkreis. Baden-Baden. 1954. 13. Budapest was supposedly on the list of the cities of the Sturm programs, but this cannot be verified. Walden, Herwarth: Einblick in die Kunst. Berlin. 1924. 171

6 On the organising see: Wucher, Monika. “Budapest.” Der Blaue Reiter. Kat. Kunsthalle, Bremen. 2000. 76-78. The catalogue of the exhibition remained in the legacy of Mattis Teutsch. Szabó, Júlia. “Historischer Umriss der Beziehungen zwischen dem Sturm und ungarischen Avantgarde.” Die ungarischen Künstler am Sturm Berlin 1913-1932. Ed. Miklos von Bartha, Carl László. Basel. 1983. In connection with Goncharova’s pictures displayed here, Kandinsky’s letter to Walden is quoted in Passuth, Krisztina. “Der Sturm. Zentrum der internationalen Avantgarde.” Paris-Berlin 1900-1933. Cat. Centre National d’Art et de Culture Georges Pompidou. Paris. 1978. 104.

7 7th August, 1922. Dr Nicolaus Rózsa, Budapest. It is worth noting that Marcel Breuer from Weimar signed it the next day, together with the Serbian Lubomir Mitzitsch, while Mattis Teutsch’s name appears on 12th August, 1922, and a month later we come across the names of Kassák and Jolán Simon.

8 Szabó, Júlia. A Magyar aktivizmus müvészete 1915-1927. Budapest. 1981. 50.

9 Kassák, Lajos. Egy ember élete. Budapest. 1928. Part two, II. 170-171.

10 Lajos Boros’s information to the author.

11 Schreyer, Lothar. “Zur Geschichte der Sturm.” Einblick in die Kunst. Berlin, 1924.169.

12 Roskhill, Mark. Klee, Kandinsky and Thought of Their Time. University of Illinois. 1992 Riedl, Peter Anselm. Kandinsky. Hamburg. 1983.

13 This is also proved by the fact that Kassák advertised Mattis Teutsch’s album of linocuts in the November 15th 1917 issue of MA. It is also not by chance that a Mattis Teutsch cut is on the cover of this issue.

14 It was published with the title of “Bilder.” Der Sturm. VII. Apr. 1916. 2-4.

15 Kassák, Lajos. “Franz Werfel.” Csavargók, alkotók. Budapest. 1975. 337.

16 Pirsich Volker. Der Sturm. Eine Monographie. Herzberg. 1985. 68-76. The author distinguishes the following periods: 1910-11 Essays; 1912-17 from materialist to absolute painting; 1917-20 the artistic search for synthesis; 1921-25 “an apparent blooming;” from 1925, decay.

17 The graphic oeuvre of Mattis Teutsch will be discussed by the author in a separate paper and will be shown in another exhibition.

18 See: Walden, Herwarth. Az új festômûvészet: expresszionizmus. Transl.: Kenessey Sándor. Budapest. Amicus, 1924. The book was published in 25 copies signed by Walden. The first numbered copy is in Lecca collection in Munich.

19 Jacoba van Heemsherk (1876-1923) Cat. Gemeentemuseum. The Hague. 1981.

20 Kandinsky, Wassily. A szellemiség a mûvészetben. Budapest. 1987. 54.

21 A good example of this is the periodical Hellweg Westdeutsche Wochenschrift für deutsche Kunst (Essen) from 1921; also the graphic of the Fels group of artists in Austria: Franz Bronstert, Fritz Furkhen, Georg Philip Wörlen, Carry Hauser.

22 Herzog, Oswald. “Der abstracte Expressionismus.” Der Sturm. X. May 1919. 29. Molzahn, Johannes. “Manifest des absoluten Expressionismus.” Der Sturm. X. Sept. 1919. 90-92.

23 Kállai, Ernô. Új Magyar piktúra. Budapest. 1925. 1990. 166.

24 Bauer, Rudolf. “Führung.” Der Sturm. VIII. Nov. 1917.

25 Roters, Eberhard. Berlin 1910-1933. Die visuellen Künste. Fribourg. 1983. 74-83.

26 The Transylvanian papers (Erdélyi Szemle July 21, 1918; Brassói Hírlap July 31, 1918) reported on the success of the two engravings as published (the second was wrongly identified as a woodcut). His name was not registered among the exhibitors of Der Sturm, although his graphics may have been displayed in the Sturm bookshop, where hand-pressed copies of the engravings published in the journal were sold.

27 Walden, Herwarth. Az új festômûvészet: expresszionizmus. Berlin. 1918; Budapest: Amicus, 1924. 8.

28 July 13, 1918 The signature of Hans Mattis Teutsch can be found in the guestbook. Sturm Archiv, Staatsbibliothek Berlin. He arrived home from Berlin on July 22, 1918, as he wrote in a letter to his friend Zoltán Bálint dated the following day. MTA MKI-C-I-174.

29 János Mattis Teutsch’s answers, entitled, “Feljegyzések” (Notes) are in the possession of the family. The 1918 exhibition in Berlin is as yet unverified.

30 The drawing of Franz Marc for the poem “Versöhnung” by Else Lasker- Schüler is on the title page of MA Vol. IV. 1919. No. 4 (Fig. 2); the oil-painting Tiger appeared on the title page of MA Vol. II. March 15, 1917.

31 Two sheets of the lino-album appeared on pages 117 and 118 of issue 8, 1919 of Der Sturm next to Lothar Schreyer’s Die neue Kunst, which was published serially and was a seminal piece analyzing the role of rhythm in arts.

32 For instance, István Tömörkény, (I. 1910 7.); Dezsô Kosztolányi (I. 1910 24. V. 1914 17-18, 19-20, 21-22. VI. 1916 3-4,9-10, 11-12.); Zsigmond Móricz (V. 1914 23-24.) and more published in Der Sturm. Illés, Ilona. “Modern irodalmunk németországi népszerûsítôje: Stefan Klein.” PIM Évkönyv. Budapest. 1962. 173-186. Here I would like to express my sincere thanks to Jenô Murádin for the information on Henrik Horvát.

33 MTA MKI Archive, MKCs-C-174. See documents.

34 No complete collection of Der Sturm catalogues can be found in one location; moreover, a few copies are totally unknown. See: Pirsich ibid. and the author’s correspondence with him, 1999-2000. And Arntz Collection. Getty Museum Los Angeles.

35 Cat. No. 114-119. Komposition 26, 27, 35, 36, 38, 40.

36 There were linocuts by Mattis Teutsch in the collection of Nell Walden, see: ibid.

37 This general phenomenon imbued the representatives of culture as far as Transylvania. See: Dienes, László: “Ázsiai hatások Európa szellemi életében.” Napkelet. [Kolozsvár] 1921. 641-644.

38 Its first edition was published in 1907 in Budapest dedicated to the memory of Blavatsky, the initiator of the modern theosophical movement. German translation: Der Sturm. 1924. I. 33-36.

39 Walden, Herwarth. “Künstler, Volk und Kunst.” Der Sturm. X. 1920. 1.12.

40 Lao-Tse. Az élet értelme. 1925. Rough copy in Lecca collection,Munich.

41 Der Sturm. X. May 1919.

42 Okkultismus and Avantgarde. Von Munch bis Mondrian. Cat. Schirn Kunsthalle, Frankfurt. 1995.

43 Eichner, Johannes. Von Ursprüngen moderner Kunst. Munich. 1957. Herbert Read: Arp. Budapest. 1968. Okkultizmus und Avantgarde. ibid.

44 Simon, Andor. “Kinyilatkoztatás.” Versek. With Mattis Teutsch’s linocuts. MA. [Bécs] 1921.

45 This December 1918 issue of MA is in a private German collection.

46 Walden, Herwarth. “Nachrevolutionäre.” Der Sturm. X. 1919 36. and “Die Kunst in der Freiheit”. Der Sturm. XI. 1920 4.

47 Bartha–László. ibid.

48 Der Sturm. XIII. 1922 No. 9 139. and 1922 No. 10 151.

49 Der Sturm. XIII. 1922 9-12. XIV. 1923 7. Moholy-Nagy, László. Neue Gestaltung in der Musik. See: Passuth, Krisztina. Tranzit. Budapest. 1996. 111-122.

50 Kállai, Ernô. “Konstruktivizmus.” Ma. May 1, 1923 Vol. VIII. No. 7-8; [p. 7]

51 Der Sturm, XIV. 1923 9. 139. M.H.Maxy’s engraving and, from Hungary, Aurél Bernáth’s reproduction Katedrálisok és házak (Cathedrals and Houses) and Tibor Déry’s writing “Üvegfigurák” (“Glass Figures”) were published in this issue.

52 Der Sturm. XIV. 1923 11. Title page and pp. 166-167. Together with the poems of Hans Arp, it documents the two artists’ closeness, which has not as yet been thoroughly analysed.

53 Mattis Teutsch’s letter to Zoltán Bálint. MTA MKI MKCs-C-174.

54 “Marie Mattis Teutsch Kronstadt’s” signature in Walden’s album, July 16, 1923. Mattis Teutsch asks on the postcard for the return of his works that had remained in Chicago, dated July 18, 1923. MTA MKI Archive.

55 Mitgliedskarte for H. M. Teutsch 10.000–DM. In V. Menshikoff’s collection. Budapest.

56 Mattis Teutsch’s letter to Iván Hevesy, February 26, 1924: “the Viennese exhibition will be held soon at Würthle’s, the pictures and the sculptures are already there.” Mattis Teutsch’s name does not appear in the article of Die Graphischen Künste 1925 52., which lists the exhibitions of the Firma Würthle, while the group-exhibition of Der Sturm does feature his name.

57 There is no complete copy out of the 25. See: Majoros ibid.

58 Gyula Halász’s (Brassai) letters. Lecca Collection, Munich.; Walden’s postcard concerning the confirmation of Mattis Teutsch’s money transfer. 1922 12.21. Szarvasy collection, New York.

59 Endre Dózsa’s answer to the question posed by the periodical Napkelet, ‘What should the Transylvanians do?’ in 1922. Napkelet. [Kolozsvár] 1922.

60 Internationale Kunstausstellung Düsseldorf May 28–July 3, 1922. Cat. 640. Empfindung 16, 641. Komposition 15. He sent pictures from Romania with Pascin; it should be noted that his fellow-Brassóvian, Walter Teutsch, sent pictures from Murnau as a German entrant. According to the contemporary press, these were degraded Fauvist efforts. Sharing a name can be misleading!

61 ‘I want to visit you in Weimar. We travel there for one or two days over the 26-27th, I assume. Please, let me know if I will find you there’. Mattis Teutsch’s letter to Weimar for Sándor Bortnyik, Berlin 1923. Kassák Museum, i.n. 192.

62 Bajkay, Éva. L’avant-garde hongroise et ses relations avec la Belgique et les Pays-Bas de 1915 a 1925. Cat. Brussels. 1999.

63 Mattis Teutsch’s lino-cuts: Der Sturm. 1925 6. title page and p. 84,89.

64 Die Abstrakten. Internationale Vereinigung der Expressionisten, Futuristen, Kubisten und Konstruktivisten. Of Hungarian origin, László Moholy-Nagy, Vilmos Huszár and Béla Kádár also belonged to this group. Until 1928 it was led by Wiliam Wauer and later by Oskar Nerlinger, who, having turned it towards active politics in 1932, incorporated the group under the name Zeitgenossen (Contemporaries) in ASSO, which affiliated Socialist artists.

65 The verification of membership of Die Abstrakten was sent to 91 Halensee Paulsborner Str Berlin. Lecca collection, Munich.

66 Otto Brattskoven’s letter from Berlin to Mattis Teutsch in Brassó, November 27, 1927. This is in the possession of the family, as is the manuscript of the German article on the artist.

67 The picture, 98.3x61.8 cm, was shown at the Berlin exhibition. A similar outcome can be seen on page 59 of Kunstideologie.

68 Teutsch Matthis (sic) Cat. No.’s: 1023-27. Geist und Körper, Zwei Vertikale, Amerika, Ruhe, Mutter. In the headed letter of October 17, 1928 the artist is asked where the works should be shipped back.

69 Temesvári Hírlap, September 21, 1932.

70 Politischen Konstruktivisten. Die Gruppe progressiver Künstler. Cologne. Cat. Neue Gesellschaft für bildende Kunst. Berlin (W), 1975.

71 Hans Mattis Teutsch’s statement was published in Ellenzék on October 20, 1929, 8.

72 Müller & Kiepenheuer Verlag, Potsdam. 1931. The periodical A bis Z published a review of his oeuvre.

73 The date of the last postcard addressed to Mattis Teutsch from Der Sturm is March 19, 1929. Mgt. New York.


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