37 - Curth Georg Becker, Leda and the Swan, watercolour from 1951

Curth Georg Becker, Leda and the Swan, watercolour from 1951 Curth Georg Becker, 1904 Singen - 1972, German painter and graphic artist, here: Leda and the Swan, a modern interpretation of the ancient mythological theme, watercolour, 60 x 50 cm, signed and dated ‘51’ on the right-hand side About the artist: From 1920 to 1923, Becker attended the School of Building Trades in Essen, followed by the School of Crafts and Applied Arts in Krefeld (where he was part of the circle around Heinrich Campendonk). Around 1932, he changed the spelling of his birth name, Kurt, to the French-influenced "Curth." In 1924, he began his studies at the Düsseldorf Art Academy, where he received support from Walter Kaesbach. From 1926 to 1928, he was a master student under Heinrich Nauen. His studio neighbors included Otto Dix and Paul Klee. Around 1933, he moved to Berlin, where he became involved with the circle of artists on Berliner Klosterstraße and formed friendships with Werner Heldt, Cato Bontjes van Beek, Paul Dierkes, and Gerhard Marcks. In 1937, as part of the Nazi campaign against "degenerate art" (*Entartete Kunst*), his watercolor *Landscape near Le Brusé* and his 1927 painting *Portrait of a Child*-both held in the Düsseldorf municipal art collection-were confiscated and destroyed. From 1947 to 1972, he served as the artistic director of the Singen Art Exhibitions, which he transformed from a local showcase into an art exhibition of supraregional significance.