Biermann, Aenne (1898–1933)
Biermann, Aenne (1898–1933)
German photographer, specializing in still lifes, portraits, and montages. Name variations: changed name to Aenne or Anne when she began to take photographs. Born Anna Sibilla Sternefeld in Goch am Niederrhein, Germany, in 1898; died in Gera, Germany, in 1933; married Herbert Biermann, in 1920; children: Helga and Gershon (Gerd).
Aenne Biermann did not begin her photographic career until well after her marriage and the birth of her two children. She started taking pictures of her family after they moved to Gera, a culturally progressive center in Germany. In 1927, she collaborated with geologist Rudolf Hundt, photographing minerals, and then expanded her work to include close-up plant studies. Between 1929 and 1932, she produced approximately 3,000 negatives, from which 400 prints have survived. With solo exhibitions at Kunstkabinett, Munich (1928) and Kunstverein, Gera (1930), Biermann was also represented in several important group exhibitions, including Film und Foto (Stuttgart, 1929) and Die neue Fotografie (Basel, 1930). In 1949, a special section was devoted to her work in the group exhibition Des Foto (Stadthalle, Gera, 1949). Her photographs were published by the German art historian and photographer Franz Roh in 60 Fotos.