Description
Book SynopsisFrom sculpture to woodcuts, glass design to poetry, the work of German artist Egon Altdorf crossed boundaries. ‘Making culture behind the barbed wire’ was how Altdorf endured wartime captivity, inspiring a life dedicated to art that was innovative, spiritual and redemptive. Exhibiting in London alongside sculptors Barbara Hepworth, Lynn Chadwick and Reg Butler at the Unknown Political Prisoner exhibition (1953), he adopted an increasingly abstract approach, rooted in Biblical symbolism yet embracing different faiths, notably in designs for the outstanding interior of Wiesbaden’s new synagogue. Exploring Altdorf’s work in ten interdisciplinary chapters, this book illuminates the still-overlooked contribution of artists who reshaped postwar existence: the lost generation.
Table of ContentsGraham Ward: Introduction 1 Judith LeGrove Egon Altdorf: The lines of life 2 Deborah Lewer The prodigal and the prophecy: Egon Altdorf’s woodcuts and German art debates, c.1948–52 3 Dorothea Schöne Change and (re)reflection in the sculptural work of Egon Altdorf after 1945 4 Judith LeGrove A vital Conversation: Egon Altdorf and British sculpture in the early post-war years 5 Julia Kelly Symbolism of the cosmos in Egon Altdorf’s post-war sculpture 6 Elaine Morley Egon Altdorf and the transformative power of art: the postwar literary context 7 Nicolette David Beyond language: the relationship between art and poetry in Egon Altdorf’s work 8 David Jasper The art of Egon Altdorf: symbolism and spirituality 9 Ulrich Knufinke Wiesbaden’s new synagogue (1966) and its design by Egon Altdorf 10 Judith LeGrove Into the light: Egon Altdorf’s memorials to the future Arie Hartog Epilogue
