Kurt Günther
Kurt Günther (*1893-1955) grew up in Gera and went to study at the Dresden School of Arts and Crafts in 1913, where his fellow students included Otto Dix. During the First World War, Günther was discharged from the army in 1917 due to severe pulmonary tuberculosis. He received treatment for the disease in Davos (Switzerland), where he also met Ernst Ludwig Kirchner.
Günther returned to Dresden in 1919 and continued his studies at the Academy of Art, where he was a member of Richard Müller's painting class. Günther undertook artistic experiments in Expressionism, Dadaism and Verism and was part of the Dresden Dada group. At this time, he worked closely with Otto Dix.
During the Nazi era, Günther was defamed as "degenerate" and banned from exhibiting. The artist spent the period up to the end of the Second World War in internal emigration. During this time, he mainly painted portraits of children and landscapes.
After the war, Günther was appointed professor and took part in exhibitions at the Leipzig Museum of Fine Arts, among others.
Kurt Günther died in Stadtroda in 1955.
