Inventory number: 1407

Item category: Drawings

Item name:

Institution: Kranenburgh, Culturele Buitenplaats in Bergen

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It is not known from whom the Municipality of Bergen acquired these 133 drawings in 1969. It is also not known how Schwarz lost possession of them.

The Municipality of Bergen owns the drawing Dubrovnik, another 132 travel sketches/drawings, and an etching by Samuel (nickname: Mommie) Schwarz (the other drawings can be viewed upon request). These works were acquired by the Municipality in 1969, and a note in the archive states that they were purchased for an amount of fl. 600. No mention is made of the individual from whom or the reason why the Municipality bought these works. The Jewish artist Mommie Schwarz (Zutphen, 28 July 1876 – Auschwitz, 19 November 1942) was a victim of the persecution of the Jews during the war. He was married to the German-born Dutch painter of Jewish descent Else Berg. The artistic couple settled in Amsterdam in 1910, and spent longer periods of time in the seaside towns of Schoorl and Bergen. Schwarz's work is regarded as belonging to the 'Bergen School'. They also took many working trips, including to Majorca, Italy, France, and Yugoslavia. These sketches testify to their passion for travel. Following the outbreak of the war, the couple went into hiding in Baambrugge, but decided to return to their own house on the Sarphatipark in Amsterdam. They were rounded up there on 12 November 1942, and transported via Westerbork directly to Auschwitz and immediately executed upon arrival. Mommie Schwarz deposited works during the war, but these sketches were not among them. It is therefore not clear how these sketches left Schwartz's possession.