Ulrich SCHWANECKE

1932 – 2006

Watercolours, paintings, illustrated books

Ulrich Schwanecke in 1967

Short biography

Ulrich Konrad Heinraich Valtin SCHWANECKE was born on 6th January, 1932, in Halberstadt (Harz), Germany. He emigrated to South Africa in 1952 as a mining recruit.

Visited SWA for the first time in 1962, together with the artist Jan Buys. In 1965 and 1966, Ulrich Schwanecke and Durant Sihlali went jointly on landscape painting trips to SWA.

Details

Ulrich Schwanecke died on 15^th October, 2006, in Johannesburg

Please click on following images for a better view!

   Until 1970, Ulrich Schwanecke painted mostly on the spot from nature  

   Thereafter his work was done in the studio using reference material collected during hikes and safaris.

Ulrich Schwanecke in his studio in Johannesburg in 1988 (img.© Nella Botha)

He travelled extensively outside Southern Africa, including:

Greece 1985 – USA 1985 and 1987 – Portugal 1989 – Australia 1990 – Egypt 1992 – China Mainland 1994

Selected solo shows in Southern Africa

Chelsea Gallery, Wynberg, Cape Town

1986 – 4^th July; 1988 – 11^th April; 1990 6^th September; 1992 – 26^th November; 1994 – 9^th May

Crake Gallery, Johannesburg

1994 – 15^th August

Gallery 101, Johannesburg

1966 – 23^rd May; 1967 – 31^st July; 1968 – 1^st July

Gallery 21, Johannesburg

1977 – 16^th August; 1980 – 26^th August; 1983 – 22^nd November; 1984 – 2^nd December; 1986 – 18^th November; 1989 – 3^rd May (“Bird/Man”); 1990 – 6^th March (“Ostermond”)

A work from the Ostermond Series by Ulrich Schwanecke, 1990 

Gallery International, Cape Town

1984 – 6^th August

Guild Gallery, Pretoria

1991 – 2^nd September

Hoffer Art Gallery, Pretoria

1980 – 14^th October; 1984 – 25^th September; 1986 – 11^th March

Karen McKerron Gallery, Bryanston

1985 – 11^th August; 1987 – 15^th August; 1988 – 7^th August; 1989 – 8^th October; 1991 – 24^th March; 1992 – 22^nd March; 2000 – 21^st May

Kleine Galerie, Windhoek

1995 – 16^th March

Kunstvereinigung Namibia, Windhoek

1989 – 18^th May

Click on image for details!

SA Association of Arts, Pretoria

1970 – 9th November

Schweickert Art Gallery, Pretoria

1989 – 9^th November; 1993 – 23^rd June; 1995 – 20^th April

The Haenggi Foundation Inc., Johannesburg

1981 – 1^st November

Selected solo shows in Germany, Switzerland

Bad Harzburg – Kurhaus Kunst Kabinett – 23^rd May, 1987

Basel – Artimex Fine Arts – 9^th May, 1998

Click on image for details!

Installation view - Basel - May, 1998

Details of 3 watercolours on view in Basel, 1998

Bonn – Deutsche Afrika Stiftung – 28^th October, 1993

Derenburg – Kloster Michaelstein – 1st May, 1998

Hagenstal/Elgg – 5th September, 1992 („Panoramen des Südlichen Afrikas“)

Thun – Gallery Rosengarten – 10th June, 1996 (Ulrich also presented 3 one-day workshops)

Click on image for details!

Thun – Gallery Rosengarten – "Kreuz + Quer" / "Criss + Cross" - 15th July to 10th August, 1996

Thun – Gallery Rosengarten – Aquarell International - 18th August to 13th September, 1997

Selected Works

"The edge of the Namib" - watercolour - 58x156 cm - auctioned by Russell Kaplan Auctions, Johannesburg - 30th March 2013 - Lot P38

"Extensive landscape SWA" 1986 - watercolour - 4 in 1 - 61x176 cm - auctioned by Russell Kaplan Auctions, 18th February, 2012 - Lot P33

"Banana Trees" - watercolour - 2 in 1 - 114x76 - over 2 sheets 109x148 cm - auctioned by Strauss & Co., Johannesburg - 20th April, 2015 - Lot 235

Most museums in South Africa own Ulrich Schwanecke's watercolours

Illustrated article in "South African Panorama" - June, 1988 pp. 48/50 showing many of his watercolours

Ulrich Schwanecke produced art calendars over a number of years illustrated with his watercolours

Ulrich Schwanecke published a number of art books, accompanied by his writings, often of a satirical.nature

Illustrated list -17 publications - PDF

Some links to his works

Updated  23rd August, 2016

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