Jak R. Maier
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Jak R. Maier (* 21 Feb. 1933 in Tailfingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany; † 2010 in Tailfingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany).[1] was a German artist and metal sculptor who worked in Berlin and taught at the Berlin University of the Arts.[2] Some of his sculptures were installed in public space during his lifetime.[1] His artistic estate is now in the possession of the Bauhaus-Archiv / Museum für Gestaltung in Berlin.[2]
Life[edit]
Jakob Richard Maier was one of three children born to master metal- and locksmith Konrad Maier and his wife Maria, neé Wizemann[3]. After completing a three-year apprenticeship as a smithy with his father[4], he attended the Master Locksmithing School in Stuttgart from 1956 to 1957 where he earned his certification as a master artisan metalsmith[5]. During this time, he also spent time abroad (studying?) in Switzerland and Italy, where he studied under Prof. Toni Benetton in Treviso[6]. In April 1958 he began auditing courses at the Berlin State University of the Fine Arts (HfbK), now the University of the Arts (UdK)[7]. Jakob Richard Maier finally enrolled there as a full-time student in the winter semester 1959/60 and majored in Free Art[8]. At the same time, he attended sculpting courses offered by Prof. Hans Uhlmann[9]. After completing the master class, he began working as a freelance metal sculptor[10]. From the winter semester 1967/68 to the summer semester 1968, Maier worked as a lecturer at the State Academy for Graphic Arts, Print Media and Advertising in Berlin, which later became the State University for Music and Performing Arts[11]. In the 1960s, he adopted the pseudonym Jak R. Maier.
Maier started teaching as a lecturer at the University of the Arts in Berlin in 1968 and carried the official title of “Professor” from 1971 to 1998[12]. He held his last course in 1999[13]. There are hardly any teaching documents or lesson plans which still exist today[14]. In 1962 he married Marianne Erna Luise Maier, née Lüttcher[15] (*17 July 1932 in Berlin-Karlshorst; † 15 May 2013 in Berlin-Reinickendorf)[16]. The couple lived in a single-family home in Berlin-Reinickendorf for the rest of their lives.[1]
Works[edit]
Jak R. Maier mainly produced small metal sculptures, but also made use of other materials such as Plexiglas, stone and wood[17]. Most of Maier’s sculptures are miniature models for what he hoped would someday be installed as large-scale sculptures in public space[18]. Only few of his projects were ever realised in outdoor locations. One of his more prominent pieces consisting of three red cubes was erected in front of the Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf city hall. It was later displayed in front of the Berliner Funkturm (radio tower) before being moved to Baden-Württemberg[19]. Another metal sculpture entitled Sportler in Aktion (Athletes in Action) is still on display in the town of Albstadt-Truchtelfingen in Baden-Württemberg[20]. Maier staged his small-scale models in numerous photos, presenting them against a cityscape or indicating their intended size by positioning them next to human figurines or matchbox cars.[1] His artistic oeuvre comprises large-scale sculptures, small sculptures, models, photographs, graphic works and construction sketches[21] In her last will and testament, his wife Marianne Maier stipulated that the Bauhaus-Archiv / Museum für Gestaltung Berlin was to inherit her and her deceased husband’s joint assets.[2] Jak R. Maier’s artistic estate has been in the possession of the Bauhaus-Archiv / Museum für Gestaltung Berlin since 2013.[22] The Bauhaus-Archiv owns some 200 small sculptures, eight larger-sized sculptures, 2,000 graphic works, 200 construction plans, over 100 photo albums and around 1,000 photographs[23]. The couple’s monetary assets were transferred to the Jakob and Marianne Maier Foundation for the Cultivation of the Ideas of the Bauhaus.[22]
Solo exhibitions[edit]
Jak R. Maier participated in the following exhibitions and received the following distinctions, based on documents found in the artist’s estate now in the possession of the Bauhaus-Archiv / Museum für Gestaltung Berlin:
- 1961 Opening of Galerie “S” Ben Wargin, Berlin
- 1962 Jury-free art exhibition, Berlin
- 1965 Participation in the German Art Prize for Young Sculptors, Stuttgart
- 1965 Junge Stadt sieht junge Kunst, Wolfsburg
- 1966 Hechingen
- 1967 Junge Stadt sieht junge Kunst, Wolfsburg
- 1967 Galerie Verein Berliner Künstler, Berlin
- 1967 Württembergischer Kunstverein, Stuttgart
- 1967 Schwäbisch Gmünd
- 1967 Balingen
- 1968 Jury-free art exhibition, Berlin
- 1968 Württembergischer Kunstverein, Stuttgart
- 1969 Junge Stadt sieht junge Kunst, Wolfsburg
- 1969 Galerie Verein Berliner Künstler, Berlin
- 1969 Haus am Kleistpark: Berliner Künstler 69, Berlin
- 1987 Porsche Centre on Kurfürstendamm, Berlin
- 2023 Unpacking Jak R. Maier, Bauhaus-Archiv / Museum für Gestaltung at the temporary bauhaus-archiv, Berlin
Group exhibitions[edit]
- 1972 Annual exhibition at the "Verein der Berliner Künstler*innen", Berlin
- 1978 Exhibition of Jakob R. Maier and K. R. Schadt “Malerei+Plastik” at the Galerie Verein Berliner Künstler, Berlin
- 2023 HIER UND JETZT, Basement, Berlin
Distinctions[edit]
- December 1963, award by the “Architecture and Visual Arts” competition
- 1966, participation in a competition to design a monument for Berlin in Rio de Janeiro
Other publications on the artist Jak. R. Maier[edit]
- Oliver Möst (ed.): Accompanying catalogue for the exhibition “Hier und Jetzt” at the Basement Berlin (27 January – 30 March 2023)
- Maier, Jak R.: Jak R. Maier Metallplastikern, self-published, Berlin, 1970
- Regio Kunstwege, Bodensee Kulturraum, https://regio-kunstwege.eu/kunstwerk/sportler-in-aktion-von-jakob-r-maier
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Wahlich, Maximilian / Fock, Gloria: “Jak R. Maier: Metal, Self-archiving and Missing Artworks”, https://stories.bauhaus.de/beitraege/jak-r-maier-metall-selbstarchivierung-und-verschwundene-kunstwerke/
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Jaeggi, Annemarie: “A Piece of Berlin Art History”, https://stories.bauhaus.de/beitraege/maierjaeggi/.
- ↑ Employee questionnaire completed by Jakob Richard Maier, 30 November 1968, p. 1, document from the estate of Jak R. Maier at the Bauhaus-Archiv Berlin.
- ↑ Employee questionnaire completed by Jakob Richard Maier, 30 November 1968, p. 3, document from the archive at the University of the Arts (UdK)/ Berlin, employee file of Jakob Richard Maier.
- ↑ Employee questionnaire completed by Jakob Richard Maier, 30 November 1968, p. 3, document from the archive at the University of the Arts (UdK)/ Berlin, employee file of Jakob Richard Maier.
- ↑ Official certificate of the Bauhaus-Archiv / Museum für Gestaltung on the estate of Jak R. Maier, 26 October 2016, document from the estate of Jak R. Maier at the Bauhaus-Archiv Berlin.
- ↑ Enrolment documents of Jakob Richard Maier, 26 October 1959, document from the archive at the University of the Arts (UdK)/ Berlin, employee file of Jakob Richard Maier.
- ↑ Official certificate of the Bauhaus-Archiv / Museum für Gestaltung on the estate of Jak R. Maier, 26 October 2016, document from the estate of Jak R. Maier at the Bauhaus-Archiv Berlin.
- ↑ Enrolment documents of Jakob Richard Maier, 26 October 1959, document from the archive at the University of the Arts (UdK)/ Berlin, employee file of Jakob Richard Maier.
- ↑ Maier, Jak R.: Curriculum vitae, 30 November 1968, archive of the University of the Arts (UdK) / Berlin.
- ↑ Official certificate of the Bauhaus-Archiv / Museum für Gestaltung on the estate of Jak R. Maier, 26 October 2016, document from the estate of Jak R. Maier at the Bauhaus-Archiv Berlin.
- ↑ Letter of notification by the State University of the Fine Arts in Berlin to the Senator for Science and Art, dated 29 July 1972, document from the archive at the University of the Arts (UdK)/ Berlin, employee file of Jakob Richard Maier.
- ↑ Exhibition unpacking Jak R. Maier, Bauhaus-Archiv Berlin (1 March – 30 June 2023).
- ↑ Wiedemeyer, Nina: “The Ideal Bauhaus Artist”, https://stories.bauhaus.de/en/beitraege/maierwiedemeyer/
- ↑ Employee questionnaire completed by Jakob Richard Maier, 30 November 1968, p. 1, document from the archive at the University of the Arts (UdK)/ Berlin, employee file of Jakob Richard Maier.
- ↑ Statues of the Jakob and Marianne Maier Foundation for the Cultivation of the Ideas of the Bauhaus, 2 February 2015, document from the estate of Jak R. Maier, Bauhaus-Archiv Berlin.
- ↑ Small sculptures from the estate of Jak R. Maier, Bauhaus-Archiv Berlin.
- ↑ Official certificate of the Bauhaus-Archiv / Museum für Gestaltung on the estate of Jak R. Maier, 26 October 2016, document from the estate of Jak R. Maier, Bauhaus-Archiv Berlin.
- ↑ Uhrig, Stefanie: “Jak R. Maier: Der Glücksschmied”, Berliner Morgenpost, 26 February 1984
- ↑ "Sportler in Aktion von Jakob R. Maier am NeckarAlbKunstweg".
- ↑ Fock, Gloria: “Things We Leave Behind”, https://stories.bauhaus.de/en/beitraege/maierfock/.
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 Wahlich, Maximilian: “Of Photo Albums, Sports Cars and Metal Scissors”, https://stories.bauhaus.de/beitraege/maierwahlich/.
- ↑ Official certificate of the Bauhaus-Archiv / Museum für Gestaltung on the estate of Jak R. Maier, 26 October 2016, document from the estate of Jak R. Maier, Bauhaus-Archiv Berlin.
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