“Refuge – Exile.” Angela Becker-Fuhr – Paintings on Paper

The summer exhibition at the Hesse Museum features watercolors, pastels, and collages by Angela Becker-Fuhr, in which the artist seeks to capture an “atmosphere of living history.” Her works on paper focus on the houses, villas, and gardens of writers, artists, and intellectuals who found temporary exile on the Côte d’Azur in the 1930s. This was particularly true of Sanary-sur-Mer. Following in the footsteps of her father, Curth Georg Becker (1904–1972), Angela Becker-Fuhr traveled to the Côte d’Azur several times, gradually creating a series of paintings titled “Mare Nostrum.” What these works have in common is that the artist was inspired not only by the beauty of the subject but also by the story or stories hidden behind it. Angela Becker-Fuhr also explores the themes of refuge and exile at other historically significant locations. In Venice, for example, she created paintings in which she depicts picturesque palaces and squares, quays, and portals while simultaneously alluding to the history behind what is visible. Montagnola in Ticino also developed into an attractive retreat for writers and artists, at the latest after World War I. Curth Georg Becker and Hans Purrmann (1880–1966), who had been friends since their time together in Le Brusc and Sanary-sur-Mer, respectively, reunited here in the 1950s. In 1946, Curth Georg Becker moved to the Höri Peninsula, where he found himself in the company of numerous artists who had retreated to southern Germany during the Nazi era and formed a kind of community bound by shared fate. Angela Becker-Fuhr, born in 1946 in Konstanz, lives and works as a freelance artist in Öhningen. She received her first painting and drawing lessons from her father. After training as a bookseller, she attended the School of Advertising in Frankfurt am Main and subsequently the University of Applied Sciences for Design in Wiesbaden. She has lived in Paris, Cologne, and Berlin, among other places; has traveled extensively; and has worked in Southern Europe and Southeast Asia. Accompanying Program for the Special Exhibition - Fri., July 24, 2026, 7:00 p.m., Opening Reception - Tue., Aug. 18, 2026, 11:00 a.m., Guided Tour - Tue, Sept. 15, 2026, 11 a.m., guided tour - Sun, Oct. 11, 2026, 3 p.m., guided tour - Sun, Nov. 1, 2026, 3 p.m., guided tour