Art, Design & Fashion
Landmark
Irma Stern
1894 – 1966
Brought Expressionism to South African painting, to considerable local outrage
Landmark is level 2 of 4 in the South Africa Hall of Fame: a first that opened a door, or the pre-eminent figure of their generation in this country. See how the levels work.
Why they are here
She came back from Germany painting like an Expressionist and South African critics called it degenerate. She kept going, and is now among the most collected artists the country has produced.
Irma Analize Stern was born on 2 October 1894 and studied in Germany, where she was shaped by the Expressionists and by Max Pechstein in particular.
Her early exhibitions in South Africa met hostility and mockery from critics unprepared for the work. She persisted, travelling widely in Africa and painting its people and places across a long career, and achieved national and international standing in her lifetime. Her house in Cape Town is now the Irma Stern Museum, and she mentored artists including Ernest Mancoba. She died in 1966.
Her early exhibitions in South Africa met hostility and mockery from critics unprepared for the work. She persisted, travelling widely in Africa and painting its people and places across a long career, and achieved national and international standing in her lifetime. Her house in Cape Town is now the Irma Stern Museum, and she mentored artists including Ernest Mancoba. She died in 1966.
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