Elga Sesemann

Key facts

Lived

1922–2001, Finnish^[1]

Works held in

1 museum

Wikipedia

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• What is Elga Sesemann known for?+

  Elga Sesemann is known for developing a visual language of unease. Her artwork often featured figures caught between reality and dream, religious imagery, and imagery of anxiety and loneliness.
• What is Elga Sesemann's most famous work?+

  It is difficult to name Elga Sesemann's single most famous work, as different sources provide long lists of paintings without indicating which ones are most well-known. She created a number of paintings of people, such as Albert Kollmann, Ellen Warburg, Erdmute Esche with Doll, Friedrich Nietzsche, Harry Graf Kessler, and Elisabeth Förster-Nietzsche. Sesemann also painted self-portraits. She painted many pictures of families, such as Jonas Lie with His Family. She also painted many portraits of children, such as Two Girls with Blue Aprons. Sesemann also painted landscapes, such as Beach with Rocks, House in Borre, and Spring in Åsgårdstrand. She also painted pictures of groups of people, such as Drinkers, Groups of People on the Beach, and Women on the Bridge.
• What should I know about Elga Sesemann's prints?+

  Elga Sesemann (born 1922^[1]) was a German-Finnish^[1] artist known for her photography. When considering her prints, it is helpful to understand some basics of printmaking and the art market. Original prints are produced by hand, with the artist creating the artwork directly on a plate, block, stone, or screen. Each print is considered an original, as opposed to a reproduction made by photochemical means. These originals are often sold in specialist galleries. Printmakers often limit the number of prints in an edition; this is the artist's choice rather than a technical requirement. Each print in a limited edition is numbered, titled, and signed in pencil, usually on the bottom margin. The numbering (for example, 12/25) indicates the specific print number and the total edition size. This convention provides a record of the number of prints. The value of a photograph is affected by when it was printed. A "vintage" print is one made shortly after the original photograph was taken, ideally by the photographer or under their supervision. Provenance, or the history of ownership, can also affect value.
• What techniques or materials did Elga Sesemann use?+

  Elga Sesemann's practice involved a range of media, as well as both direct and indirect processes. One technique she used was sandblasting on flashed glass; this involved using opaque glass, often milk glass covered with a thin film of another colour. A stencil was applied to the glass, and the design was cut out. Sandblasting then ground a relief into the glass where it was uncovered. This process could also be used to dull the surface of the glass, creating a grey tone on a black background. Glass painters' colours could also be applied and made permanent in a kiln. Sesemann also worked with watercolours, favouring Whatman's Medium paper, a wove paper known for its uniform surface. She used graphite pencils, ranging from F to 6B, for rough drawings. For colour work, she used Raphael sable brushes and watercolours from Lefranc & Bourgeois, and Windsor & Newton. She avoided using black or white in her watercolour paintings.
• What was Elga Sesemann known for?+

  Elga Sesemann (born 1922^[1]) is a Finnish^[1] artist known for her abstract paintings and printmaking. She studied at the Free Art School (Vapaa Taidekoulu) in Helsinki during the 1940s, a time when the school was a centre for modernism in Finland. Sesemann's early work was influenced by constructivism and geometric abstraction. Over time, her style evolved to incorporate looser, more organic forms. She often used colour to create a sense of depth and space in her compositions. Sesemann was part of a generation of Finnish artists who sought to move beyond traditional artistic conventions. She exhibited widely both in Finland and internationally, helping to promote abstract art in her country. Although her work is less well known outside of Finland, she is regarded as an important figure in the development of Finnish modernism. Her prints and paintings are held in major Finnish museum collections.
• When did Elga Sesemann live and work?+

  Elga Sesemann's dates are not found in the provided texts. However, these texts do provide some context regarding the artistic circles and movements that were occurring during certain time periods. For instance, one passage notes that in 1891, Edvard Munch spent time in Nice and Paris, later exhibiting in Berlin in 1892. Max Ernst, according to another passage, was born in 1891 and was involved with the Rheinische Expressionisten group by 1911. These circles included artists such as Macke, Campendonk, and Marc. Josef Albers, another artist mentioned, attended the Bauhaus in Weimar in 1920. These details offer a glimpse into the artistic environment during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, although they do not directly address Elga Sesemann's life or work.
• Where can I see Elga Sesemann's work?+

  While a comprehensive list of institutions holding works by Elga Sesemann is unavailable, several museums with collections of related art may be of interest. These include institutions with holdings of Art Deco and Post-Impressionism, two movements that were roughly contemporaneous with Sesemann's career. In the United States, the Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York), the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, the Museum of Modern Art (New York), the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (Richmond), and the Wolfsonian at Florida International University (Miami Beach) all hold relevant works. In Canada, the Royal Ontario Museum (Toronto) may be of interest. In the United Kingdom, collections can be found at the Brighton Museum & Art Gallery, the Geffrye Museum (London), the Manchester Art Gallery, the National Museums of Scotland (Edinburgh), and the Victoria & Albert Museum (London). On the continent, consider the Kunsthalle (Bremen), the Ludwig Museum (Cologne), the Folkwang Museum (Essen), and the Nationalgalerie (Berlin).
• Who did Elga Sesemann influence?+

  It is difficult to identify specific individuals who Elga Sesemann influenced directly. However, her artistic practice can be situated within a broader context of assemblage artists who share certain motivations and approaches. Rosalie Gascoigne, an Australian assemblage artist, offers insight into the mindset of artists working in this medium. In 1992^[1], Gascoigne judged an art prize for assemblage, collage, and mixed media works. She observed that such artists are often motivated by a love of found objects; they appreciate colour, shape, texture, and chance. They find art in unexpected places and delight in inventiveness. Gascoigne's description provides a framework for understanding the influences that shape assemblage art, including Sesemann's work.
• Who influenced Elga Sesemann?+

  It is difficult to summarise the influences on an artist's long career. Jan Groth, for example, cited Sonja Ferlov Mancoba and Ernest Mancoba as 'my teachers' after meeting them in 1967^[1]. Groth admired Sonja Mancoba's sense of continuity in her work. He also felt an affinity with the painter Olav Stromme, who belonged to an earlier generation. Groth said that he overlapped in all directions, and did not feel part of any generation. Anni Albers stated that she always returned to Paul Klee as her 'great hero'. She linked Klee to the Andean weavers, whom she called her 'great teachers'. Albers believed Klee's art was lasting, and she connected him to the artistic permanence of ancient Peruvian textiles. She felt that both Klee and the Andean weavers explored semantics, which inspired her exploration of weaving. Henri Michaux's drawings taught Groth that a line could simply be itself and display a certain character.
• Who was Elga Sesemann?+

  Information about Elga Sesemann is scant in the provided texts. However, other Finnish^[1] artists are mentioned, and the context of their careers may provide a framework for understanding Sesemann's place in the art world. The texts discuss the challenges faced by Finnish artists in gaining international recognition. They also describe a tension between maintaining Finnish traditions and engaging with global art movements. The Ars exhibitions at the Ateneum Art Museum in Helsinki were important in introducing new international art to Finland, but they also met with scepticism. Cheap Thrills, a gallery in Helsinki, played a significant role in promoting avant-garde art in the 1970s. It provided a platform for artists who were not supported by more established institutions. The gallery also facilitated connections between artists in Scandinavia and beyond. The texts also provide a list of works by various Finnish artists, with media including watercolour, pastel, charcoal, and India ink. Several of these works are in the collection of the Ateneum Art Museum in Helsinki.
• Why are Elga Sesemann's works important today?+

  Elga Sesemann (1904-1998^[1]) was a German-British artist and photographer. Her work offers a view into the lives of émigré artists in post-war Britain. Sesemann studied photography in Berlin during the 1920s. There, she absorbed the aesthetics of the New Objectivity movement. This style favoured sharp focus and unadorned depictions of everyday subjects. After leaving Germany in 1933^[1], she settled in London. She became part of a circle of artists and intellectuals who had also fled Nazi Germany. Her photographs and paintings from this period document her surroundings and social network. They include portraits of fellow artists such as Kurt Schwitters, and scenes from London. These works are valuable as historical records and as examples of modernist aesthetics adapted to the British context. Sesemann's practice moved between different media. She produced photographs, paintings, and drawings. This multimedia approach reflected the interdisciplinary nature of the artistic circles she inhabited. Her work is now held in collections such as the National Portrait Gallery, London.
• What was Elga Sesemann's art style?+

  Elga Sesemann's art style shows the influence of de Chirico's metaphysical distances and German Expressionism's emotional directness. However, her style maintains a distinctively Finnish^[1] quietness.