Ottilie W. Roederstein
The German-Swiss painter Ottilie W. Roederstein (1859–1937) devoted her entire life to art. As a freelance portrait painter, she was one of the most successful female artists of her time. She achieved financial independence and captured areas of social freedom that were denied most of her female contemporaries. Her paintings were presented in exhibitions in Germany, France, England, the United States, and Switzerland and achieved international acclaim.
Roederstein settled in Frankfurt in 1891 together with her companion Elisabeth Winterhalter, the first female surgeon in Germany. Winterhalter advocated the founding of a girls’ secondary school and supported the women’s rights movement in Frankfurt. Today, Roederstein is largely unknown to a broader public, despite her regular exhibition activity and her former renown. Luckily, Städel Museum in Frankfurt is about to organize an exhibition of the artist in 2022. We present today's work thanks to them. : )))
If you would like to learn more about women artists, please check our Women Artists Notebook!
P.S. Here are 10 female artists forgotten by art history. Do you already know them?