The Life of an Artist
1886
1980
Oskar Kokoschka’s successful but tormented life began at Pöchlarn an der
Donau on March 1, 1886. He
was the second of four sons, but he lost one of his brothers at an
early age shortly after the family moved to Vienna.
His mother came from a family of foresters located in the mountainous
region of Styria and his father hailed from an established and celebrated
line of goldsmiths from Prague.
Despite expressing some wishes to study chemistry, Oskar Kokoschka was swept into the art world upon receiving a scholarship to study at the Vienna School of Arts and Crafts. He began work in oil painting as well as various sketching media and eventually began writing as well. He wrote two plays which are now known as the beginnings of German Expressionist Theater. He was asked to leave the school because of the scandalous and violent nature of his work.
In 1907, he began work at the Weiner Werkstotte (Vienna Workshop), and in 1908, his paintings were included in the Kunstschau exhibition featuring Gustav Klimt and various members of his avant garde group. His work soon began to draw controversy and shortly thereafter he entered into a period of mental and financial instability. At his lowest point, his only income was said to come from wagering against tourists that he could “drink them under the table,” so to speak. His life regained some direction thanks to his strong friendship with prominent architect Adolf Loos, who helped secure portrait commissions for him.
In 1910, Kokoschka was commissioned to illustrate title pages for the magazine Der Sturm. He also secured a contract with a highly influential art dealer. In 1911, he was given a position as an assistant teacher at the school that had previously dismissed him. His work was once again featured in various shows and exhibitions.
That same year marked the beginning of his relationship with Alma Mahler, the prominent and beautiful widow of contemporary composer Gustav Mahler. This relationship would serve as a source of both inspiration and turmoil for the rest of his life. By 1913, their relationship was beginning to deteriorate, and Kokoschka’s work was once again generating some friction. Indeed, there was so much controversy that the Austrian government banned him from teaching.
Oskar Kokoschka’s escape became possible, once again, through the help of Adolf Loos, who had him appointed to a prestigious regiment of dragoons in the Austrian army. In 1915, he suffered a serious head trauma and a punctured lung due to a bayonet wound. His health continued to deteriorate and it was not until his move to Dresden, that he was able to recuperate. While in Dresden, he was appointed to a professorship at the Dresden Academy, which he held from 1919 to 1924, when he resigned his position in order to travel. Over the next few years, he spent time in North Africa, Palestine, Turkey, Egypt, and various parts of Europe.
In 1932, Kokoschka’s work was attacked by Mussolini and subsequently by the Nazi press. Four hundred seventeen pieces of his artwork were seized by the National Socialists in 1937, and twelve were featured in a Degenerate Art Exhibition in Munich.
By 1939, he had married Olda Pavlovska and was living in England, where he passed several tumultuous years.
In 1945, Oskar Kokoschka’s work was featured, along with the revolutionary work of Klimt and Schiele, in a tribute exhibition to a war-torn Vienna. He founded his School for Seeing in 1953 in Salzburg at the Internationale Sommerakademie fur Bildende Kunst. Oskar and Olda Kokoschka moved to a house on Lake Geneva, where they remained until his death in 1980.
All information obtained from sources listed on Bibliography and Links pages.