Martha Grüenwaldt

Belgium, 1910 - 2008

Martha Grüenwaldt was born to a large family of modest means in Walloon Brabant (Belgium).⁣
⁣⁣
⁣After years of heavy labour as a farm servant, when retirement around 1981, Martha began doing drawings on salvaged wrapping paper or the backs of posters and bills.⁣
⁣⁣
⁣Mostly, she used colored pencils she snitched from her grandchildren as well as gouache and crayons.⁣
⁣Her favourite subjects were the faces of her family members and acquantances: these she would encircle with organic shapes and colored abastract motifs. She also found inspiration in reproductions of works she admired, like the portaits of Giuseppe Arcimboldo.⁣
⁣Althought working in secret at first, she ended up distributing and offering her creations to the people around her. ⁣
⁣⁣
⁣⁣
⁣⁣
unknown title and date | crayon on paper, 21 x 27,5 cm⁣

unknown title and date | crayon on paper, 21 x 27,5 cm⁣

unknown title and date | crayon on paper, 21 x 27,5 cm⁣

unknown title and date | crayon on paper, 21 x 27,5 cm⁣

Photography: DR