Arthur Cramer James Wasse (1854-1930) was born in Manchester in 1854, the son of John Angelo Wasse, a painter of miniature portraits. He started painting at an early age.
In 1875 Wasse was studying at the Manchester School of Art and, by the late 1870s, had exhibited work in London to good reviews.
He received several prizes when he was studying at the Munich school of painting.
After a short stint at the Royal Academy, Wasse returned to Munich, where he was entranced by southern Germany’s towns and landscapes and between 1875-1890 he travelled back and forth between Germany and England, running his own art school in London for a time.
He married Mary McLeod Crowther in 1880 and they had a son, Frank.
They were living in Rothenburg, Germany, when she died after the birth of their second son, Harry, in 1884. Once again he returned to England where he established a successful career, exhibiting at the Royal Academy with works including, Bent Not Broken and Lancashire Pit Lasses at Work (this has appeared on the Antiques Road Show).
Much of his earlier work depicted the poor working conditions of the Lancashire coal mines.
Between 1891-1895 he exhibited paintings with nature themes and mythological scenes such as, A Siren, Devotion and Poppies and Peonies.
In 1895 he moved back Rothenburg, residing at Klingentorbastei, a modest dwelling just outside the town walls.
He had been enthralled by the town’s medieval shapes and shadows during previous stays there. Now married to Rebecca Fanny Pittar, born in Brighton in 1869, he remained in Rothenburg until his death in 1930.
Perhaps depressed by social conditions in England, he dedicated the rest of his professional life almost exclusively to Rothenburg.
Several of his paintings captured the many moods and views of the town he enjoyed from home.
'Many depicted the town with a sombre sense of its past greatness; melancholy contrasted with thick, colourful vegetation which brought life into the scene but also suggested an advanc
From 1916-1918, as an 'undesirable alien', he had to report to the police regularly in Rothenburg.
Wilhelm Schacht vouched for Wasse, who retained his British citizenship but lived in Germany throughout the war, as a valued member of the community. He died and was buried in Rothenburg in 1930.
In 1940 Fanny Wasse gave the city 58 oil paintings on condition that they were displayed and that his grave was maintained.
The Imperial City Museum in Rothenburg has a room devoted to his work and in 2004 there was a special exhibition entitled 'Arthur Wasse-Retrospective'; the occasion was the 150th anniversary of his birth.
This allowed all his works, many of which had been deposited in recent years for reasons of conservation, to be seen again.
When Fanny died in 1954 the city inherited the sum of 11,000 DM.
Today, in Rothenburg, Wasse is a cherished painter who gained fame both nationally and internationally. There is a street named after him, Arthur-Wasse-Weg, such is the esteem in which he was, and still is, held.
There is a painting of him as a young man, by Knupfer, in the Manchester Art Gallery.
He exhibited at, amongst other venues, the Royal Society of British Artists, Suffolk Street London, Glasgow Institute, Walker Art Gallery Liverpool, Manchester City Art Gallery, Royal Academy of Art and in Paris (1910).
Other paintings include, A Courtyard in Bavaria, Afternoon Repose and A Continental Village in Winter.
The artist, Annie Swynnerton (1844-1833), appointed the first woman Associate of the Royal Academy at the age of 77, was related through their grandfather, John Robinson. | The Lytham St Annes Art Collection
Arthur Cramer James Wasse (1854-1930) è nato a Manchester nel 1854, figlio di John Angelo Wasse, pittore di ritratti in miniatura. Ha iniziato a dipingere in tenera età.
Nel 1875 Wasse studiava alla Manchester School of Art e, alla fine degli anni '70 dell'Ottocento, aveva esposto lavori a Londra ottenendo buone recensioni.
Ha ricevuto diversi premi quando studiava alla scuola di pittura di Monaco. Dopo un breve periodo alla Royal Academy, Wasse tornò a Monaco, dove rimase affascinato dalle città e dai paesaggi della Germania meridionale e tra il 1875-1890 viaggiò avanti ed indietro tra la Germania e l'Inghilterra, dirigendo per un certo periodo la sua scuola d'arte a Londra.
Sposò Mary McLeod Crowther nel 1880 ed ebbero un figlio, Frank. Vivevano a Rothenburg, in Germania, quando lei morì dopo la nascita del loro secondo figlio, Harry, nel 1884.
Ancora una volta tornò in Inghilterra dove iniziò una carriera di successo, esponendo alla Royal Academy con opere tra cui, Bent Not Broken e Lancashire Pit Lasses at Work (questo è apparso all'Antiques Road Show).
Gran parte del suo lavoro precedente descriveva le cattive condizioni di lavoro delle miniere di carbone del Lancashire.
Tra il 1891-1895 espone dipinti con temi naturalistici e scene mitologiche come Una sirena, Devozione e Papaveri e peonie.
Nel 1895 tornò a Rothenburg, risiedendo a Klingentorbastei, una modesta dimora appena fuori le mura della città.
Era stato affascinato dalle forme e dalle ombre medievali della città durante i precedenti soggiorni. Ora sposato con Rebecca Fanny Pittar, nata a Brighton nel 1869, rimase a Rothenburg fino alla sua morte nel 1930.
Forse depresso dalle condizioni sociali in Inghilterra, dedicò il resto della sua vita professionale quasi esclusivamente a Rothenburg.
Molti dei suoi dipinti catturavano i molti stati d'animo e le vedute della città di cui godeva da casa.
«Molti dipingevano la città con un cupo senso della sua passata grandezza; la malinconia contrastava con una vegetazione fitta e colorata che dava vita alla scena ma suggeriva anche un avanzamento.
Dal 1916-1918, in quanto "straniero indesiderabile", dovette presentarsi regolarmente alla polizia a Rothenburg.
Wilhelm Schacht garantiva per Wasse, che mantenne la cittadinanza britannica ma visse in Germania durante la guerra, come membro stimato della comunità.
Morì e fu sepolto a Rothenburg nel 1930. Nel 1940 Fanny Wasse donò alla città 58 dipinti ad olio a condizione che fossero esposti e che la sua tomba fosse mantenuta.
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