Irma Stern is one of the few women artists who have left an everlasting imprint on the history of art. She is one of the most successful artists in South Africa who achieved national and international fame. Her work is still being talked about and is circulated as one of the most priced in the South African art history.
In 2000, one of her paintings broke an all-time record by going under the hammer for R1.6 million at Sotheby’s South Africa in Johannesburg. Again in 2007, Stern’s work was auctioned for R 6.6 million. Irma Stern’s work is ever gaining popularity and in 2010 Stern’s Gladioli created another record by being sold for R13.3 million. Stern’s paintings continued to create records and history with another painting sold for 26.7 million in the same month in which the Gladioli was sold. In 2011, another of her art was sold for R34 million at an auction in London.
Life of Irma Stern
Irma Stern was born in 1984 in Schweitzer-Renecke, a small town in the Transvaal. During the South African War, her father was put on a job in a British concentration camp. With their father away on war, Irma’s mother took her daughter and son to Cape Town. When her father returned from the war, the family shifted to Germany. Irma’s childhood was characterised by the constant travels that the family undertook. These travels influenced her development as an artist and her love for travel continued throughout her life.
The Stern family remained in Germany during the First World War. Irma continued her education in Germany and was associated with several Expressionist artists of the time. Prominent among them was Max Pechstein who had a profound influence on Irma. Supported by her family, Irma was determined to become a painter and she held her first exhibition in 1919.
The Stern Family moved back to Cape Town in 1920. Irma had to face criticisms regarding her work as unlike the Germans the people here were conservative and were not able to comprehend her work. Regardless of the criticisms she had to face, Irma continued to paint with passion and although with some difficulty, was able to establish herself as a recognised artist by the 1940s.
Irma Stern married her tutor Dr Johannes Prinz in 1926. The marriage only lasted for 8 years and the couple divorced in 1934. Irma travelled extensively over Europe and Africa. Travelling and art were the two passions of her life. She visited many countries that heavily influenced her personality and her work. The places she visited include, Madeira, Senegal, Zanzibar, Congo, Central Africa, Spain and France. Between 1933 and 1945 Irma refused to travel to Germany and instead she conducted several journeys to the African countries like Congo and Zanzibar.
Her journeys provided her with a wealth of ideas and knowledge. Based on her journeys, she published two illustrated journals; ‘Congo’ in 1943 and ‘Zanzibar’ in 1948.
The Irma Stern Museum
In the year 1927, her parents bought Irma a home in Cape Town. Situated in Rosebank, the house named ‘The Firs’ remained Irma’s home till her death in 1966. This house was later turned into the Irma Stern Museum in 1971. The museum has 3 rooms that are kept just as Irma had furnished it and it also has a commercial gallery upstairs. Every year the museum conducts an exhibition program in memory of Irma Stern.
The fact that Irma Stern’s paintings are still in demand proves her value as an artist and she remains as one of the highly accomplished artists in South Africa.