Rudolf Bauer

Alexander Georg Rudolf Bauer (11 February 188928 November 1953) was a German-born painter who was involved in the avant-garde group Der Sturm in Berlin, and whose work would become central to the non-objective art collection of Solomon R. Guggenheim.

Early life Born in Lindenwald, County of Wirsitz near Bromberg, Province of Posen, Kingdom of Prussia, to middle-class parents, Bauer's family moved to Berlin, Brandenburg, in his youth. Bauer made art from an early age, but his father was disapproving, even beating him when Bauer announced his intention to go to art school. In spite of this discouragement Bauer left home and attended the Academy of Fine Arts.

Der Sturm Bauer went through several phases in his artistic expression, including a Cubist period as witnessed by this poster for a 1918 exhibition of Der Sturm in Dresden, Saxony. Bauer supported himself as an artist by creating illustrations and caricatures for some of the major magazines and newspapers of the day. In 1912, as Bauer continued to do figurative and commercial work, he began working in an abstract mode. That same year he met Herwarth Walden, who had just founded the magazine Der Sturm and the affiliated gallery. Der Sturm would become the most important artistic center in Berlin at this period. In 1915 Bauer was invited to participate in a group show at Der Sturm. He would continue to actively participate in the Der Sturm gallery scene through the mid-1920s. He had his first solo show there in 1917, with 120 "Lyrical Abstract" works, with solo shows in 1919 and 1920. Among the artists who were in the Der Sturm group were Wassily Kandinsky, Marc Chagall, Paul Klee, and Franz Marc. Like Paul Klee, Bauer became a teacher in the Sturm School.

In 1916 Bauer was introduced to the Baroness Hilla Rebay von Ehrenwiesen. Bauer traveled to the United States for the first time to be present at the opening of the exhibition. From that show a solo show of his work traveled to the Arts Club of Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, where he also visited. There would be yearly showings of this collection for the next four years at various museums.

Gestapo prison In 1938, upon his return to Germany from an exhibition of his work in Paris, France, Bauer was arrested by the Nazis for his "degenerate" art and for speculating on the black market – meaning selling his work to Guggenheim. The previous year Bauer's work had been included in the infamous Degenerate Art show in Munich, organized by the Nazis to show all the deviant, abstract art. In spite of this Bauer had refused to move from his home country. Upon his arrest Bauer was held in a Gestapo prison for several months, as Rebay and Guggenheim worked to free him. After several false starts, he was finally released unconditionally in August 1938. During his time in prison, he created dozens of non-objective drawings on scavenged scraps of paper. He spent the next months getting his paperwork in order and made the difficult decision to leave his homeland, emigrating to the United States in July 1939, just months before the beginning of World War II.

Arrival in the United States Bauer in his Duesenberg Phaeton automobile, 193?, unidentified photographer. Rudolf Bauer papers, Archives of American Art Bauer arrived in Manhattan, New York, New York County, New York, just after the official opening of the Museum of Non-Objective Painting in midtown Manhattan. Located at 24 East 54th Street, the new museum was unlike anything the New York art world had seen. The floors as well as the walls were carpeted, and the large paintings hung in oversized frames very close to the ground. The museum played recordings by Bach, Beethoven, and Chopin constantly and exclusively. Bauer's work Orange Accent was featured on the invitation to the opening exhibition titled The Art of Tomorrow.

Bauer lived with Rebay for a few months before moving to one of Guggenheim's homes in Deal, Monmouth County, New Jersey, an upscale and beautiful but isolated coastal town. At this point, Guggenheim proposed a contract with Bauer. Bauer, not properly understanding the English of the contract signed it, having been assured that his concerns were met. He thought he was to receive a lump-sum amount for 110 paintings he had already furnished Guggenheim. Instead Guggenheim put that amount ($300,000) in trust for Bauer to receive a monthly stipend. He was also now obligated to leave his future work to the foundation. As part of this contract, Bauer also received the last payment for a Duesenberg car body custom designed by Bauer.

Bauer's life's work had become completely tied up in the foundation, and he had been assured he would have a role in running it. This proved quickly not to be the case, and Bauer became very upset about the fate of his paintings. He stopped painting altogether, and made no further works the rest of his life,

In March 2014, San Francisco Playhouse premiered the play Bauer, a historically accurate yet fictionally-told interpretation of Bauer's affairs with his wife, Hilla Rebay, and Solomon Guggenheim, as told through the story of a high-tension meeting between Bauer, Bauer's wife, and Hilla Rebay. The play, which received general acclaim, was performed off-Broadway at New York's 59E59 Theaters later that year.