A fatal accident involving a firearm on his farm in Sugar Loaf ended the life of Kurt Seligmann in 1962. A Swiss-born painter and printmaker who became a naturalized United States citizen, he occupied a central role within the international Surrealist movement before and during his later career as an influential educator in New York.
Early Development and European Training
Born in 1900 in Basel, Switzerland, Seligmann grew up in a household with a father who dealt in furniture. Despite early resistance from his family, he pursued formal artistic training, enrolling at the École Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Geneva in 1919. His early development included studies with Eugen Ammann and Ernst Büchner, supplemented by a later period at the Accademia di Belle Arti in Florence starting in 1927.
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Take the IQ test →Engagement with Parisian Surrealism
Seligmann moved to Paris in 1929, where he integrated into the city’s avant-garde circles. He collaborated with the Abstraction-Création group, serving in executive capacities until 1936. During this decade, he participated in the Salon des Surindépendants and saw his work exhibited at Jeanne Bucher’s gallery. His exposure to Indigenous art during travels to Tahiti, Alaska, and British Columbia significantly informed his evolving aesthetic, which emphasized complex, ritualistic themes.
Relocation and New York Career
In 1939, following the German invasion of Poland, Seligmann emigrated to New York City. He facilitated the departure of other European artists and quickly integrated into the local art scene. While he became known for his writing on magic and occult subjects, his tenure at Brooklyn College from 1953 to 1962 defined his later professional life. He balanced this academic work with the creation of etchings, dance set designs, and continued painting until his retirement to a dairy farm in Sugar Loaf.
Fast facts
- Born: 1900, Basel, Switzerland
- Died: 1962, Sugar Loaf, New York
- Occupations: Painter, printmaker, writer, illustrator, draftsperson
- Faculty service: Brooklyn College
- Citizenship: Switzerland and United States
- Marriage: Arlette Paraf, 1935
Questions readers ask
What subjects did Kurt Seligmann feature in his paintings?
His work often featured medieval knights and troubadors depicted in macabre, ritualistic settings, heavily influenced by his interest in the occult and totemistic imagery.
Did Seligmann maintain ties to Surrealist groups in New York?
He was active in the New York Surrealist scene until 1942, when a disagreement regarding tarot interpretation with André Breton led to his expulsion from the movement.
