Julia Ris

Julia Ris (21 September 1904, Kingston upon Hull – 16 December 1991, Basel) was a Swiss painter, sculptor, and graphic artist. She taught materials and drawing at the Gewerbeschule Basel, where she introduced students, including Jean Tinguely, to early 20th-century artistic movements such as Dada, Abstraction, and the Bauhaus.

Early life and education Julia Ries was born on the 21 September 1904, to a German Jewish family in Kingston upon Hull. Ris' father, Gustav Ries, was an importer and later owned a millinery factory, whilst Ris' mother, Agnes Ries née Siblerman, was a housewife and artist. In 1925, Ris married Swiss artist Theo Eble, a fellow classmate at the Academy of Fine Arts.

According to Jean Tinguely, both Ris and Eble studied at Bauhaus.

Career From 1930–1957, Ris taught at the Gewerbeschule Basel applied arts department and sporadically created her own artworks. Ris' students included Beatrice Afflerbach and Jean Tinguely. Ris is credited with introducing Tinguely to the work of Kurt Schwitters, Paul Klee, and to other artists interested in representations of movement (notably the Italian Futurists). In 1967, Ris and Held were joint artists-in-residence at the Cité internationale des arts From 1970–1977 Ris taught at the Technical University of Basel, and lived in Sissach.

Public artwork Julia Ris (1967) "Ohne Titel" ("Untitled"). Stained glass. University of Basel, Switzerland

Exhibitions Date(s) Title Place Type Notes 1942 ″Julia Ris and Meret Oppenheim″ Galerie d'art moderne Marie-Suzanne Feigel, Basel, Switzerland Group exhibition 18 October – 23 November 1947 ″Allianz. Vereinigung moderner Schweizer Künstler″ Kunsthaus Zürich, Zurich, Switzerland Group exhibition . 10 June – 15 July 1950 ″Réalités Nouvelles. 5ème Salon″ Palais des beaux-arts, Paris, France Group exhibition Part of ″Salon des Réalités Nouvelles″ 2 December – 31 December 1950 ″Weihnachtsausstellung 1950″ Kunsthalle Basel, Basel, Switzerland Group exhibition 9 May – 24 June 1951 ″International Water Color Exhibition. Sixteenth Biennial″ The Brooklyn Museum, New York City, United States Group exhibition 8 September – 28 October 1951 ″Malerei″ Kunsthalle Bern, Bern, Switzerland & Schulwarte Bern, Bern, Switzerland Travelling group exhibition Part of the ″Schweizerische Kunstausstellung Bern 1951″ 8 September – 28 October 1951 ″Plastik, Wandteppiche″ Kunsthalle Bern, Bern, Switzerland & Schulwarte Bern, Bern, Switzerland Travelling group exhibition Part of the ″Schweizerische Kunstausstellung Bern 1951″ 8 September – 28 October 1951 ″Zeichnung, Graphik″ Kunsthalle Bern, Bern, Switzerland & Schulwarte Bern, Bern, Switzerland Travelling group exhibition Part of the ″Schweizerische Kunstausstellung Bern 1951″ 14 March –14 April 1963 M. H. de Young Memorial Museum, San Francisco, United States Group exhibition Joint exhibition with Victor Ries 24 October – 19 November 1964 "Julia Ris – Fritz Held" Galerie Staffelei, Zurich, Switzerland Group exhibition 24 August – 29 September 1974 ″Vier Basler Künstlern zum Geburtstag: Julia Ris, Albert Schilling, Max Sulzbachner, Alexander Zschokke″ Kunsthalle Basel, Basel, Switzerland Group exhibition 3 September – 30 September 1989 ″4 Jahrzehnte Kunst in Baselland 1945-1989″ Schloss Ebenrain, Sissach, Switzerland Group exhibition 6 May – 30 June 2011 ″Abstractions″ Woman Made Gallery, Chicago, United States Group exhibition