Highly interesting and extensive dossier on the German artist Hedwig Arnheim (1894-1944) and her family.

Ca. 1000 photos, diff. sizes and present., some with ms. captions on verso, loose or pasted on album paper (some doubles, a min. number with def.).

Hedwig Arnheim was the daughter of general practitioner Felix Arnheim (Berlin 1864-Grembergen 1941) and his wife Lisbeth Samuel (d. 1929) living in Hamburg. They had three other children: Hans (1895-1940), Eva Karoline Friederike (1902-?) and Ruth Anna Frieda (1912-?). Given the historical events in Germany during the 1930s and the family's Jewish roots it became more and more difficult for Felix Arnheim to earn an income. Increasing discrimination towards Jews forced the family to flee. Hedwig emigrated to France in 1936. Felix, whose situation financially deteriorated as did his relationship towards the Hamburg government and institutions, could not flee until 1939. He went to Belgium, where his daughter Eva and her family lived. There he died impoverished and alone in 1941. Back then Eva had already fled from Belgium to France. Hedwig, multi-talented, and described as very beautiful woman, studied at the Hamburg School of Arts and Crafts where she met and married the expressionist artist Ewald Düberg. Together they had a daughter, Esther Maria, born in 1918. Two years later in 1923, after her divorce, she married Naum Slutzky. They lived with Hedwig's parents until they divorced in 1930. Hedwig earned a living in Nice as an applied artist, designer and embroiderer. After being denounced in 1943 she was arrested and interned at the Drancy camp near Paris. From there she was deported to Auschwitz were she probably died in the gas chambers. This large number of photos covers to a great extent the lives of the family Arnheim, their friends and relatives between ca. 1890 and 1940: father and mother Arnheim, their relatives, Hedwig and her brother and sisters and their friends, Hedwig's two husbands, daughter Esther and Ruth's daughter Kathrin Elisabeth, etc. Furthermore some 200 photos featuring holidays, places they visited, the seaside, etc. Also included are a couple of handwritten documents (theatre plays, songs ?). Some names of photographers: A. Mocsigay (Hamburg), Erich Kastan (Hamburg), E. Bieder (Hamburg), Collmann (Darmstadt). Joined to this vast collection are: 11 mounted (vintage) silver prints by or about Hedwig Arnheim: 1. [Arnheim, H. ?] - Sculpture of Hedwig Arnheim by Ewald Dülberg. Ca. 1915. 9,7 x 14,9 cm, ms. caption in pencil on verso. - 2-4. [Collmann, Hermann] - 3 intriguing portraits of Hedwig Arnheim. Darmstadt, 1926. 17,1 x 12 cm, ms. captions in pencil on verso referring to the photographer. - 5-6. Hirsch, Max - Hedwig Arnheim at a costume party at the Curio Haus. Hamburg, Febr. 1926-1927. 2 photo postcards, 13,7 x 9 cm, date and ms. caption in ink and pencil on verso. - 7. [Arnheim, Hedwig] - Self-portrait: Selbst, 34. 1934. 7,3 x 5,3 cm, caption on black mount. - 8-9. [Arnheim, H. ?] - Balcony and alleyway. Nice, 1936. 2 photos, 8,5 x 13,7 cm, ms. captions in pencil on verso "Pâques, 36, Nice, 16". - 10-11. Kastan, Erich - 2 b/w portraits of Hedwig Arnheim. Hamburg, ca. 1932. 22,4 x 16,6 cm, photographer's stamp on verso.