Anita Clara Rée (born 9 February 1885 in Hamburg, died 12 December 1933 in Kampen) was a German avant-garde painter during the Weimar Republic. She killed herself after the anti-Semitic government declared her work degenerate. Her works were saved by a groundskeeper.

Biography

Born into an old Jewish family of Hamburg merchants who traded in goods from India, she was the daughter of Israel Rée and Clara, née Hahn. Anita and her sister Emilie were however baptized and raised as Lutherans, in accordance with the social norms of assimilated upper middle class and upper class Jewish families in Germany at the time.

From 1905, she studied with the Hamburg painter Arthur Siebelist. In 1906, she met Max Liebermann, who recognized her talent and encouraged her to continue her artistic career. Around 1910 she, Franz Nölken and others formed a studio community, but it broke up due to her unrequited love for Nölken. During the winter of 1912–1913, she studied with Fernand Léger in Paris.

In 1913, she participated in a major showing at the Galerie Commeter in Hamburg. From around 1914, Anita Rée gained recognition as a portrait painter. In 1919, she joined the "Hamburg Secession", modeled on similar groups in Berlin and Munich. In 1921, she toured the Tyrol. From 1922 to 1925, her primary residence was in Positano.

She returned to Hamburg in 1926 and helped found GEDOK, an association of women artists. She also created several murals in public buildings, but most were later destroyed by the Nazi government.

In 1930, she received a commission to create a triptych for the altar at the new Ansgarkirche in Langenhorn. The church fathers were not happy with her designs, however, and the commission was withdrawn in 1932 over "religious concerns". Meanwhile, the Nazis had denounced her as a Jew and the Hamburg Art Association called her an "alien". Shortly after, she moved to Sylt.

She committed suicide in 1933, partly as a result of having been subjected to such hostility and continuing harassment by antisemitic forces, partly due to disappointments on the personal level. In a note to her sister, she decried the insanity of the world. In 1937, the Nazis designated Rée's work as "Degenerate art" and began purging it from museum collections. Wilhelm Werner, a groundskeeper at the Kunsthalle Hamburg preserved many of Rée's paintings by hiding them in his apartment.

Selected works

Exhibitions

• 1986 – Eva und die Zukunft. Das Bild der Frau seit der Französischen Revolution, Hamburger Kunsthalle
• 2004 – Kunst der 20er Jahre in Hamburg, Hamburger Kunsthalle
• 2005 – Ausgegrenzt, Hamburger Kunsthalle
• 2006 – Künstlerinnen der Avantgarde, Hamburger Kunsthalle
• 2010 – Himmel auf Zeit. Kunst der 20er Jahre in Hamburg, Hamburger Kunsthalle
• 2011/12: – Die Sammlung des Hausmeisters Wilhelm Werner, Hamburger Kunsthalle, 28. September 2011 bis 15. Januar 2012
• 2017/2018 – Anita Reé. Retrospektive, Hamburger Kunsthalle

Literature

• Carl Georg Heise: Anita Rée. Christians Verlag, Hamburg 1968
• Bettina Roggmann: Anita Rée. In: Eva und die Zukunft. Prestel Verlag, München 1986 (Ausstellungskatalog Hamburger Kunsthalle)
• Jutta Dick, Marina Sassenberg (Hrsg.): Jüdische Frauen im 19. und 20. Jahrhundert. Rowohlt Verlag, Reinbek 1993, ISBN 3-499-16344-6.
• Maike Bruhns: Anita Rée. Leben und Werk einer Hamburger Malerin 1885–1933. Verein für Hamburgische Geschichte, Hamburg 2001, ISBN 3-923356-15-3.
• Maike Bruhns, Jewish Art? Anita Rée and “New Objectivity” In: Key Documents of German-Jewish History, December 6, 2016. doi:10.23691/jgo:article-106.en.v1
• Karin Schick Anita Rée. Retrospektive, Monografie (English), Prestel Verlag, ISBN 978-3-7913-5711-9.

References

External links

Media related to Anita Rée at Wikimedia Commons

Little Fires Everywhere is the second novel by the American author Celeste Ng. It was published in 2017 by Penguin Press. The novel takes place in Shaker Heights, Ohio, where Ng grew up. The novel focuses on two families living in 1990s Shaker Heights who are brought together through their children. Ng described writing about her hometown as "a little bit like writing about a relative. You see all of the great things about them, you love them dearly, and yet, you also know all of their quirks and their foibles."

For three weeks in April 2020, Little Fires Everywhere was No. 1 on The New York Times fiction best-seller list, concurrent with the release of a television adaptation of the book.

Plot

In 1998, the Richardson home in Shaker Heights, Ohio, catches fire. Arson is suspected, as there were multiple small fires.

The previous year, 1997, Elena Richardson rents her rental home on Winslow Road to Mia Warren, an artist, and her teenage daughter, Pearl. Elena's younger son, Moody, who is Pearl's age, develops a crush on Pearl and becomes friends with her. Through Moody, Pearl meets the rest of the Richardson siblings: Lexie, Trip, and Izzy. Pearl, who is used to a transient lifestyle in which her mother scrapes together money, is charmed by the Richardsons and their established home. She spends time at the Richardson home every day and develops a crush on Trip, and Mia works part-time at a Chinese restaurant called the Lucky Palace and sells photographs through a dealer named Anita Rees in New York.

Mia becomes concerned about Pearl's idealisation of the Richardsons. When Elena condescendingly offers her a job doing housekeeping for her family, she is hesitant at first but agrees only because she wants to keep an eye on Pearl. Mia meets Izzy, the black sheep of the family, and the two become close. Izzy becomes particularly fascinated with Mia, and asks if she can be Mia's assistant so she can spend more time with her. She spends many afternoons with Mia at the home on Winslow Road. Izzy reveals that the orchestra teacher, Mrs Peters, racially abused a black student, Deja, in class and seeks revenge by jamming toothpicks in the doors at school, blocking access to the toilet. Mrs Peters then becomes desperate to urinate and ends up soiling her skirt and tights in the girls' toilets, much to everyone else's mirth.

The Richardsons are invited to the birthday party for Mirabelle Rose McCullough, the adopted daughter of Elena's friends, Linda and Mark. After talking with Bebe Chow, a coworker at Lucky Palace, Mia learns that the child is actually named May Ling Chow and is Bebe's daughter, whom she left at a firehouse in the middle of a postpartum episode and economic hardship. Bebe has been looking for her child for over a year. Bebe is despondent as she has no money for lawyers. Mia advises her to get the local news involved. The scandal results in Bebe getting visitation rights and help from an Asian-American lawyer named Edward Lim pro bono.

Elena discovers that Bebe learned of her child's whereabouts through Mia. Angry on behalf of her friend, she investigates Mia's past. She tracks down Mia's parents and learns that Pearl was conceived by Mia for a wealthy New York couple named Joseph and Madeline Ryan who were unable to have children of their own. Mia could not face the idea of giving up her child. She told the couple that she miscarried and ran away with Pearl; Mia's parents hadn't heard from her since.

Lexie gets pregnant and asks Pearl to come with her to get an abortion. Afraid of being discovered, Lexie uses Pearl's name at the clinic. Pearl takes Lexie back to her mom's house, and Mia cares for Lexie while keeping the abortion a secret from the rest of the Richardson family. Pearl and Trip begin to have sex, which they keep a secret from everyone. When Moody discovers what's going on, he and Pearl stop speaking. Elena investigates a suspicion that Bebe had an abortion and, to her shock, discovers Pearl is listed as having had one. She confronts Moody about being the father, but he tells her she is accusing the wrong son.

Bebe Chow loses her case and Mia comforts her. Elena confronts Mia about finding Pearl's name at the abortion clinic, and asks Mia to move out. Pearl is reluctant to go, but when Mia reveals the truth about her family and Pearl's father, Pearl gains a deeper understanding for her mother, and agrees to leave Shaker Heights. Izzy realizes that Moody, Lexie, and Trip have all used Pearl in their own way and becomes angry at them. She attempts to visit the Warrens, but finds the rental home vacant. Choosing a moment when they are all out of the house, she pours gasoline on each of her siblings' beds, not realizing that her mother is still in the house. She lights the fires and leaves.

After the fire, the Richardsons go to the rental home, now vacated by the Warrens, where they find that Mia has left them with photographs that have personal significance to each of them.

Bebe Chow, using Mia's words as inspiration, sneaks into the McCulloughs' home and kidnaps her daughter, flying with her to Canton. The McCulloughs unsuccessfully spend thousands of dollars searching for them. Eventually, they are approved to adopt a baby from China. Mia and Pearl hit the road, planning to reconnect with Mia's family and Pearl's father. Izzy runs away to Pittsburgh with the name of Mia's parents, promising herself that if she is caught and returned, she will continue to run away until she is never forced to come back again. Elena realizes that her greatest fear, losing Izzy, has come true, and vows to spend the rest of her life looking for her daughter.

Main characters

The Richardson Family

• Elena Richardson: A third-generation resident of Shaker Heights who writes for the local paper and lives a wealthy lifestyle with her husband and four children

• Bill Richardson: A prominent lawyer who is married to Elena Richardson.
• Alexandra "Lexie" Richardson: The oldest Richardson child. She is a senior in high school and plans on attending Yale.
• Bill "Trip" Richardson III: The second Richardson child. He is a junior in high school who is popular and plays sports.
• Michael "Moody" Richardson: The third Richardson child. He is a sophomore in high school and befriends Pearl Warren.
• Isabelle "Izzy" Richardson: The youngest Richardson child. She is a freshman in high school and rejects the Richardson's' wealthy lifestyle.

The Warren Family

• Mia Warren: A photographer who specializes in unique prints. She has lived a transient lifestyle for her daughter Pearl's entire life. She rents her home in Shaker Heights from Elena Richardson and works as her housekeeper. She also works at a Chinese restaurant.
• Pearl Warren: Mia's daughter who is a sophomore in high school. She does not know who her father is and throughout the novel, becomes more curious about finding out who he is and what happened when she was a child.

Others

• Linda McCullough: A childhood friend of Elena's who adopted an abandoned baby after years of fertility struggles.
• Mark McCullough: Linda's husband.
• Mirabelle McCullough/May Ling Chow: The infant who was abandoned by Bebe Chow and adopted by Linda and Mark McCullough.
• Bebe Chow: Mia's co-worker at the Chinese restaurant. She wants her abandoned baby back from the McCulloughs.
• Brian: Lexie Richardson's boyfriend who is African American.

Inspiration

Ng is from Shaker Heights, Ohio, where the book is set. She said that after being away from Shaker Heights for ten years, she "appreciated more all the ways Shaker Heights is unusual, and [she] wanted to try and write a story that would explore some of those facets of the community."

She chose to include the transracial adoption in the novel because it's an issue that touches on class, race, and motherhood simultaneously. In an interview for BLARB, Ng said, "Many adoptions today are transracial, which raises really complicated questions about how we handle and talk about race—and racial bias—in America."

Reception

According to the review aggregator website Book Marks, the novel received rave reviews from critics. Writing for The Guardian, Lionel Shriver found the book "extremely well done and yet [she] didn't warm to it". In a review for the San Francisco Chronicle, Alexis Burling described the novel as "… a finely wrought meditation on the nature of motherhood, the dangers of privilege and a cautionary tale about how even the tiniest of secrets can rip families apart…" In a starred review, Kirkus Reviews noted, "with her second novel, Ng further proves she's a sensitive, insightful writer with a striking ability to illuminate life in America."

The book was the winner of the Goodreads Choice Awards for Fiction in 2017.

Miniseries

A miniseries adaptation of the novel was executive produced by Reese Witherspoon and Kerry Washington for Hulu with an 8-episode order. Witherspoon and Washington are also starring in it. Liz Tigelaar served as the showrunner and executive producer. Ng served as a producer.

References

External links

• Official website

Wilhelm Amsinck Burchard-Motz (4 July 1878 in Hamburg, – 13 January 1963 in Hamburg) was a German lawyer and national-liberal politician. He served as Senator for Trade, Shipping and Industry of Hamburg from 1925 to 1933 and as Second Mayor from 1933 to 1934. Burchard-Motz was a member of the Nazi Party.

He was the son of Hamburg First Mayor Johann Heinrich Burchard and Emily Amsinck. Following studies in Heidelberg, Lausanne and Cambridge, he worked as lawyer in Hamburg from 1904 where he was a member of the Esche Schümann Commichau (chambers, as in association of barristers).

In the 1950s, he was Vice President of the German Golf Association.

References

External links

• Media related to Wilhelm Burchard-Motz at Wikimedia Commons

Magnus Weidemann was a German painter, graphic artist, photographer and writer. He was a co-founder of naturism in the life reform.

Selected exhibitions

Solo exhibitions

• 1941: Altonaer Museum, Hamburg
• 1941: Grenzlandmuseum, Kunstverein Flensburg
• 1950: Nissenhaus, Husum
• 1990: Kleinkunst im Buchdeckel – Exlibris von Magnus Weidemann, Akademie am Meer, Volkshochschule Klappholttal
• 2008: Galerie Witt, Hamburg
• Seit Jahren Dauerausstellung im Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum

Other

• 1907: Schwarz-Weiß-Ausstellung von Mitgliedern der Schleswig-Holsteinischen Kunstgenossenschaft, Kiel, Flensburg und Altona
• 1925: Juryfreie Kunstausstellung im Kunstverein in Hamburg
• 1932: Ausstellung im Altonaer Museum in Hamburg, zusammen mit Martha Vogeler
• 1946: Kunstausstellung Kampen auf Sylt, Alte Sturmhaube, mit Albert Aereboe, Willy Graba, Ivo Hauptmann, Carl Hilmers, Tom Hops, Alfred Jensen, Albert Johannsen, Fritz Klimsch, Otto Larsen, Herbert Marxen, Franz Radziwill, Friedrich Schaper, Siegward Sprotte u. a.
• 1983–1984: Künstlerinsel Sylt, Landesmuseum für Kunst und Kulturgeschichte auf Schloss Gottorf in Schleswig
• 2003: Neuerwerbungen und Bilder aus dem Bestand des Söl'ring Foriining, Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum, mit Albert Aereboe, Andreas Dirks, Otto Eglau, Carl Christian Feddersen, Christian Peter Hansen, Richard Kaiser, Hugo Köcke, Franz Korwan, Ingo Kühl, Walther Kunau, Dieter Röttger, Siegward Sprotte, Helene Varges u. a.
• 2003: Sylt in der Malerei, Galerie Herold, Kampen, mit Eduard Bargheer, Georg Busse (Vater von Sylta Busse), Andreas Dirks, Ernst Eitner, Christian Peter Hansen, Ivo Hauptmann, Volker Detlef Heydorn, Hugo Köcke, Franz Korwan, Siegward Sprotte u. a.
• 2009: Land am Meer, Altonaer Museum, Hamburg
• 2014: Die Künstler-Insel, Galerie Herold, Kampen, mit Ludwig Dettmann, Andreas Dirks, Ernst Eitner, Rainer Fetting, Willem Grimm, Ivo Hauptmann, Erich Heckel, Hugo Köcke, Ernst Kolbe, Franz Korwan, Emil Maetzel, Emil Nolde, Wilhelm Ohm, Anita Rée, Friedrich Schaper u. a.
• 2015: Die Kunst und das Wattenmeer – 30 Jahre Nationalpark Wattenmeer, Kunstverein Fischerhude
• 2015–2016: Die Kunst und das Wattenmeer – 30 Jahre Nationalpark Wattenmeer, Schloss Ritzebüttel, Cuxhaven
• 2016: Lange nicht gesehen, Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum, mit Hugo Köcke, Ernst Mollenhauer, Siegward Sprotte u. a.
• 2018: Rendezvous!, Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum, mit Carl Christian Feddersen, Wenzel Hablik, Horst Janssen, Boy Lornsen, Dieter Röttger, Siegward Sprotte, Helene Varges u. a.

Selected works

Maße: Höhe × Breite

• 1919: Klosterkirche von Preetz, Bleistift auf Papier, 8,8 × 16 cm (Bildträger 21,3 × 30,3 cm) – Schleswig-Holsteinische Landesbibliothek
• 1921: Badende, Sylt, Gemälde – Museumsberg Flensburg
• 1924: Ukleisee, oil on canvas – Ostholstein-Museum Eutin
• 1925: Wandgemälde Dünen und Watt auf Sylt, Rotes Kliff, Morsum-Kliff, Binnendünen am Rande der Kremper Marsch, Tunneltal bei Ratzeburg – Altonaer Museum, Hamburg
• 1926: Morsumer Heide, Öl auf Holz, 47 × 67 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1926: Akt am Meer, Tusche auf Pappe, 24,4 × 35 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1927: Strand vor Westerland, Öl auf Pappe, 60 × 83 cm (Rahmenmaß) – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1927: Dünental, Öl auf Pappe, 105 × 75 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1929: Dünen im Schnee, Öl auf Pappe, 65 × 94,5 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1929: Heide bei Tauwetter, Ölgemälde, 64 × 94 cm – NordseeMuseum Husum
• 1932: Die Seemannsgräber, Gemälde – NordseeMuseum Husum
• 1933: Düne, Öl auf Pappe, 23 × 31,5 cm (Pappe 35,5 × 44 cm) – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1934: Der Harhoog (Abendstimmung), Skizze, Aquarell auf Papier, 8,5 × 15 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1935: Waldweg im Schnee, Öl auf Hartfaserplatte, 66 × 41 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1936: Germaniawerft, Öl auf Pappe, 50 × 69,5 cm – Stadtmuseum Warleberger Hof, Kiel
• 1938: Kampener Vogelkoje, tempera, lacquer, and topcoat on paper glued to particle board, 55 × 75 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1938: Biikefeuer auf Keitum, Öl auf Leinwand, 72 × 85 cm – NordseeMuseum Husum
• 1938: Nordische Landschaft, Dünental im Winter, Öl auf Pappe, 20,2 × 29,3 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1940: Eisstauung bei Keitum, Öl auf Hartfaserplatte, 49,5 × 23,5 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1941: Kirche und Friedhof in Nebel, Gemälde – NordseeMuseum Husum
• 1942: Gräber der unbekannten Seeleute, Öl auf Spanplatte, 66,5 × 105 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1943: Morsum Kliff auf Sylt, Öl auf Pappe, 51 × 73 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1944: Weg am Kellersee, Aquarell auf Karton, 49,5 × 73 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1945: Harhoog in Keitum, Aquarell auf Papier, 19 × 42 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1945: Winterlandschaft an der Förde bei Glücksburg, Öl auf Spanplatte, 69 × 55 cm – Museumsberg Flensburg
• 1946: Urwald Kampener Vogelkoje, Öl auf Leinwand, 65,5 × 91 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1946: Sommerglanz (Nordsee), Aquarell auf Papier, mit Pappe unterlegt, 23,7 × 30,2 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1948: Gebäude, das von einem Friesenwall abgegrenzt wird, Skizze, Aquarell auf Papier, 15 × 23,5 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1948: Landschaft mit blühender Heide, Skizze, Aquarell auf Papier, 10,5 × 15 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1949: Keitum Kliff, Skizze, Aquarell auf Papier, 10 × 16 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1950er Jahre: Hünengrab in der Heide, Skizze, Aquarell auf Papier, 11 × 15 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1953: Schale mit Enzian, Aquarell auf Papier, mit Pappe unterlegt, 21 × 24,2 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1954: Meer an der Kaimauer, Aquarell auf Leinwand, 13 × 16,5 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1955: Sonnenfunken, Öl auf Hartfaserplatte, 69 × 52 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1956: Hünengrab im Schnee, Skizze, Aquarell auf Papier, 10,5 × 14,5 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1957: Strandastern im Schilf, Öl auf Hartfaserplatte, 61 × 49 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1958: Heide auf Sylt, Öl auf Spanplatte, 61 × 92 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1958: Schilf am Watt, Öl auf Leinwand, 57 × 76 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1958: Meereslandschaft, Wattenmeer, Öl auf Spanplatte – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1958: Der Klöwenhoog, Skizze, Aquarell auf Papier, 9 × 13 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1958: Heide bei Munkmarsch, Öl auf Hartfaserplatte, 61 × 46 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1958: Sylt: Keitum – Strand, Öl auf Hartfaserplatte, 61 × 40 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1958: Hoyer-Stieg in Keitum, Öl auf Hartfaserplatte, 68,5 × 48,5 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1958: Watt, Aquarell und Kugelschreiber auf Papier, 23,3 × 29,4 cm (Rahmenmaß) – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1959: Hünengrab in der Heide bei Munkmarsch, Skizze, Aquarell auf Papier, 8 × 11 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1959: Der (ehemalige) Harhoog, bei Keitum, Aquarell und Kugelschreiber auf Papier, mit Pappe unterlegt, 21,7 × 30,8 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1960: Hünengrab bei Keitum, Öl auf Hartfaserplatte – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1960: Der Harhoog in Keitum, Aquarell und Kugelschreiber auf Papier, mit Pappe unterlegt, 33,8 × 46,3 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1960: Blühende Felder (auf Sylt), Aquarell, 45 × 49 cm – NordseeMuseum Husum
• 1961: Heidetal bei Munkmarsch, Öl auf Hartfaserplatte, 68 × 41 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1963: Dünen- und Heidelandschaft, Öl auf Leinwand, 68 × 89 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1963: Strandastern hinterm Deich, Öl auf Hartfaserplatte, 72 × 42 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1965: Salzwiese mit Priel, Öl auf Hartfaserplatte – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1965: Watt vor Keitum, Aquarell und Bleistift auf Papier, mit Pappe unterlegt, 10,3 × 14,8 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum
• 1966: Goldgras und Heide, Öl auf Hartfaserplatte, 61 × 38 cm – Sylter Heimatmuseum, Keitum

References