Anna Muthesius

Anna Muthesius born Anna Trippenbach (8 December 1870 – 30 March 1961) was a German fashion designer, concert singer, and author from Aschersleben.[1][2][3]

Anna Muthesius
Born
Anna Trippenbach

8 December 1870
Aschersleben
Died30 March 1961 (1961-03-31) (aged 90)
Berlin
NationalityGermany
Spouse(s)Hermann Muthesius

Life

She was born Anna Trippenbach in 1870.

In concert with Paul Schultze-Naumburg and Henry van de Velde, Anna Muthesius was instrumental in creating models of female reform clothing.[3]

In 1895 Max Koner painted her portrait under the title of "Fräulein Trippenbach".[4]

Max Koner - Fräulein Trippenbach (Anna Muthesius), 1895

The following year she married the aspiring architect Hermann Muthesius. They moved to London as the Kaiser had offered him a position as cultural attaché at the German Embassy in London.[5] They were anglophiles who decided to live in an artist's colony despite having rooms offered in the prestigious Carlton House Terrace near the embassy. They were regular visitors to Glasgow where they became fans of the Willow Tearooms.[6]

Anna Muthesius's 1903 book with a cover and binding by Frances MacDonald

She met leading British designers and Frances MacDonald of the Glasgow School designed the Art Nouveau[7] cover of her first book in 1903.[8] Muthesius was an advocate of Anti-fashion and her book, Das Eigenkleid der Frau (Women's Own Dress)[9] encourages women to decide for themselves what to wear. She wrote that they should choose the style and fabrics of their clothing based on aesthetics and they should not follow the dictates of fashion.[10] She felt that women were being exploited by German clothing industrialists and they should decide on their own designs. The book which incorporated a novel binding designed by MacDonald is considered an important contribution to the Artistic Dress movement.[7]

She died on 30 March 1961 in Berlin. She was survived by her son Eckart Muthesius who became a noted architect.[11]

See also

Books
  • Das Eigenkleid der Frau (Women's Own Dress), 1903[9]

References
  1. Bertschik, Julia (2005). Mode und Moderne : Kleidung als Spiegel des Zeitgeistes in der deutschsprachigen Literatur (1770-1945 (in German). Köln: Böhlau. ISBN 3-412-11405-7.
  2. Despina Stratigakos, Women and the Werkbund: Gender Politics and German Design Reform, 1907-14, Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, Vol. 62, No. 4, December 2003, pp. 490-511
  3. Rice, C. (2006). The Emergence of the Interior: Architecture, Modernity, Domesticity. Taylor & Francis. p. 137. ISBN 978-1-134-17420-1. Retrieved 13 January 2018.
  4. "61 [55] - Text - Seite - Digitale Sammlungen - Portal". sammlungen.ulb.uni-muenster.de (in German). Retrieved 2018-01-13.
  5. "Dictionary of Art Historians - Hermann Muthesius". arthistorians.info. Retrieved 2018-01-13.
  6. Miranda Seymour (29 August 2013). Noble Endeavours: The life of two countries, England and Germany, in many stories. Simon and Schuster. pp. 1911–. ISBN 978-1-84737-826-2.
  7. "Das Eigenkleid der Frau and Artistic Dress". Mackintosh Library at Glasgow School of Art. 2014-12-18. Retrieved 2018-01-13.
  8. Pamela Robertson; Hunterian Art Gallery (University of Glasgow); Walker Art Gallery (2006). Doves and dreams: the art of Frances Macdonald and J. Herbert McNair. Lund Humphries. ISBN 978-0-85331-938-2.
  9. Anna Muthesius (1903). Das Eigenkleid der Frau. Kramer & Baum.
  10. DK (11 September 2012). Fashion: The Ultimate Book of Costume and Style. Dorling Kindersley Limited. p. 236. ISBN 978-1-4093-2241-2.
  11. "DESIGN: Indische Visionen". Der Spiegel. 12. 1989-03-20. Retrieved 2018-01-15.
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