Sigrid Kopfermann, Oil on Canvas, Signed, Informal Artist

Sigrid Kopfermann

Berlin 1923 - 2011 Düsseldorf

Red Desert, 2000

Oil on canvas

Signed lower left

Size: 60 x 50 cm

Frame: 65 x 56 cm

Good condition (see photos)

Authenticity will be confirmed in writing.

Sigrid Kopfermann (born June 30, 1923, in Berlin; died June 25, 2011, in Düsseldorf) was a significant German painter, graphic artist, and art educator of the post-war period. She is considered one of the most important female voices of German Informel and a lyrical-poetic abstraction. As the granddaughter of the famous aviation pioneer Otto Lilienthal, her powerful, color-intensive works reflect a constant search for dynamism, light, and rhythm.

Artistic Work: The Path to Abstraction

Kopfermann began her artistic career in representational painting. However, influenced by travels to Paris, Ibiza, and later New York, she increasingly distanced herself from figurative depiction. Color became her central means of expression.

Her works are characterized by an interplay of subtle color gradations and powerful, rhythmic application of paint. In addition to classic canvases, she also created architectural works ("art in architecture") as well as impressive stained-glass windows. In 2003, she and her husband founded the Kopfermann-Fuhrmann Foundation in Düsseldorf-Oberkassel to preserve her artistic legacy and that of her contemporaries.

Biography (Curriculum Vitae)

1923: Born on June 30 in Berlin. Daughter of the architect Walter Kopfermann and Anna Lilienthal (daughter of Otto Lilienthal).

1941–1945: Studied at the State Academy of Art Education in Berlin. Apprenticeship with the painters Willy Jaeckel and Bernhard Dörries. Graduated with the state examination.

1945: Marriage to the painter Egon Neubauer and birth of their son. Moved to Lower Saxony (Langenholtensen, from 1948 Hanover).

1948: First commissions in the field of art in architecture and the design of church windows.

1952–1964: Extended working stays in Ibiza (1952–1954) and Paris (1957–1958), which significantly influenced her style towards abstraction.

1956: Admitted as a member of the German Artists' Association.

1957: Joined the long-established artists' association "Darmstadt Secession."

1959: Awarded the art prize "The New Generation." First major solo exhibition at the Hanover Art Association.

1963: Awarded the Advancement Prize of the State of Lower Saxony.

1966: Marriage to Dr. Otto Führmann, a lawyer, civil servant, and art collector. Relocation to Düsseldorf.

1970–2000: Numerous study trips and painting residencies, including in southern France, Italy, Peru, and the USA (New York).

2003: Founding of the non-profit Kopfermann-Fuhrmann Foundation in her own home in Düsseldorf.

2011: Sigrid Kopfermann died in Düsseldorf on June 25, shortly before her 88th birthday.

Exhibitions (Selection)

Throughout her life, Sigrid Kopfermann participated in numerous national and international exhibitions. Her works are held in important museums, including those in Hanover, Düsseldorf, Oldenburg, and Witten.

Solo Exhibitions

1959: Kunstverein Hannover (First major retrospective)
1963: Galerie d’Eendt, Amsterdam
1972: Stadtmuseum Düsseldorf
1985: Leopold-Hoesch-Museum, Düren
1990: Halle Altes Rathaus, Schweinfurt (“New Paintings”)
1998: Cubus-Kunsthalle, Duisburg
2003: Rheinisches Landesmuseum, Bonn
2008: Cubus-Kunsthalle, Duisburg (“from the Present”)
2013: Kopfermann-Fuhrmann Foundation, Düsseldorf (Memorial Exhibition)
2023: Galerie Franz Swetec, Düsseldorf (Exhibition on the 100th Anniversary of his Birth)
Group Exhibitions

from 1946: Regular participation in the autumn exhibitions of the Kunstverein Hannover
from 1956: Annual exhibitions of the German Artists' Association
1958: “Darmstadt Secession”, Darmstadt
1962: “Salon de Réalités” Nouvelles“, Paris

1983: „Deutscher Informel“, Galerie im Park, Burgdorf

2024–2025: „InformELLE. Künstlerinnen der 1950er/60s“, traveling exhibition including at the Kunsthalle Schweinfurt and the EMMA-Kreativzentrum Pforzheim.