1927
Soshana was born on September 1st in Vienna (maiden name: Susanne Schüller)
1933
Attended the Schwarzwald school in Vienna
1938
"Annexation" of Austria by Germany
Together with her mother and her brother, Soshana flead from Vienna. Short stay in Switzerland and Paris.
1939
The family moved to England, where Soshana attended the Northwood College
1940
Chelsea Polytechnic School in London: Painting and drawing classes, training in fashion drawing.
While the air raid on London, Soshana created a series of paintings on the "Blitzkrieg".
1941
Emigration to the US
Soshana attended the Washington Irving High School, New York and started painting under the guidance of Beys Afroyim.
1944
Travelled together with Beys Afroyim through the US at the age of 17. They portrait authors, musicians, statesmen and scientists like Thomas Mann, Arnold Schönberg, Lion Feuchtwanger, Franz Werfel, Otto Klemperer, Bruno Walter, Theodore Dreiser, Hanns Eisler.
Opening of the UNO in San Francisco. Soshana portrayed some of the delegates.
1945
Soshana and Beys Afroyim married in Chicago
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Author Franz Werfel on his deadbed, 1945
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Composer and conductor Bruno Walter, 1945 |
1946
Birth of son Amos in New York.
1948
First large exhibition in the Circulo de Bellas Artes, Havanna.
For the exhibition Susanne Afroyim took the name her husband had given: "Soshana" as an artist name.
1949
Soshana, Beys and Amos left the US. They stayed in Holland, Austria, England, Poland, the Czechoslovak Republic and Israel.
1951
Study at the University of Applied Arts in Vienna
1952
Study at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna under the guidance of
Prof. Sergius Pauser, Albert P. Gütersloh and Prof. Herbert Boeckl
1952
For the next years, Soshana lived in Paris
Moved into Derain's former studio, later on into the studio next Brancusi's at Impasse Ronsin.
Neighbourhood and friendship with Brancusi.
Acquainted with Kupka, Herbin, Zadkine, Cèsar, Pignon, Bazaine, Max Ernst, Yves Klein, Alexander Calder, Wifredo Lam, Sam Francis, Fontana, Gilioli, Jean Paul Sartre and the reputed Indonesian painter and philosopher Affandi.
Visited Chagall in St. Paul de Vence, was influenced by the Ecole de Paris and Informel.
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| Giacometti at work | Soshana portrayed by Giacometti |
1953
Worked in Paul Gaugin's former studio (and previous Alfons Mucha's) in the Rue de la Grande Chaumière, Montparnasse.
Friendship with sculptor Alberto Giacometti.
Pablo Picasso invited Soshana to his home in Vallauris.
• Exhibitions in various Salons: Salon de Mai, Salon d´Automne, Salon de Printemps, Salon des Réalités Nouvelles.
• Exhibition in the gallery André Weil, Paris.
Start of the collaboration with gallery owner Max Bollag, Zurich.
1954
Soshana was portrayed by Picasso
1956
Extensive travels to the Far East, to Asia, to India and to Japan.
High interest in Indian philosophy, Hinduism and Buddhism.
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| Soshana portrayed by Picasso |
Calligraphic ink painting, Soshana 1958 |
Soshana was strongly influenced by th calligraphic art of the Far East.
She learned art techniques on rice paper from Buddhist monks in Kyoto and Chinese painters in Hangzhou.
1957
• Exhibition in the Emperor's Palace, Beijing.
• Exhibitions in the Henry Lidchy Gallery, Johannesburg an in Edouard Loeb, Paris
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| Soshana at her exhibition in Beijing, 1957 | Portrait of the Indian president Dr. Radhakrishnan, Soshana 1959 |
1959
Soshana travelled through Africa. In Lambaréné she portrayed Albert Schweitzer.
Returned to Paris.Soshana started a close cooperation with the Italian painter Pinot Gallizio, they created around 20 paintings together.
Close contacts to the Cobra Group, among others to Karel Appel and Asger Jorn.
Collaboration with the O´Hana Gallery, London.
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Soshana und Pinot Gallizio painting together, Alba del Piemonte, 1960 |
1960
• Exhibitions in Brazil, South and Central America.
• First exhibition in New York and in the Mitsubishi Gallery, Tokyo.
1962
Exhibition in the Musée Picasso, Antibes, South of France.
Soshana and Picasso, 1962
1963
Exhibition in the Salon des Réalités Nouvelles.
1964
Start of extensive stays and exhibitions in Mexico
Friendship with important Mexican artists like Rufino Tamayo, Siqueiros, Cuevas, Mathias Goeritz
• Exhibition in the Krasner Gallery, New York.
1965
Met Adolph Gottlieb for the first time
• Exhibition in the gallery Wolfgang Gurlitt, Munich
1966
Exhibition in the Palacio de Bellas Artes, Mexico
1968
Journey around the world, among others to the South Seas, the Caribbean, to Thailand, Bali, Australia, India, Sikkim, Nepal, Afghanistan, Iran and Israel
Portraits of the King and the Queen of Sikkim
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| Soshana in Mexiko 1966 |
Soshana is portraying the king and the queen of Sikkim 1969 |
1969
Concept of the three dimensional art from "Soma" in Paris, steel objects with relocatable magnets, design of acrylic glass objects.
Soshana became a member of the theosophical society.
1972
Moved to Jerusalem
1973
The Yom-Kippur war started on the day of the opening of her exhibition in the Old Jaffa Gallery, four planned exhibitions were prevented by the war.
1974
Moved to New York
Soshana lived in Manhattan, among others in the legendary Chelsea Hotel.
Studio in Queens.
Acquainted with Adolph Gottlieb, Marc Rothko, Francesco Clemente and the art patron Joseph Hirschhorn.
• Nine single exhibitions
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| Soshana 1979 in New York | Soshana 1982 in Nepal |
1985
Soshana lived and worked in Vienna since 1985.
Contacted to other artists, she has known from her time in Paris such as Hans Staudacher, Hildegard and Harold Joos, as well as Trude Gill.
Worked on different projects, the collection of video and audio tapes, written records on her life and the development of the international art scene.
1987
• Gallery Prisma, Vienna
• Club Wien International, Vienna
• Art Fair, Wien-Marriott, Vienna
1988
• Gallery Prisma, Vienna
• Art Fair, Wien-Kursalon, Vienna
• Gallery Glueck, Wels, Austria
Travels to India
1989
• Art Fair, Graz, Austria
• "Dom Galerie", Wiener Neustadt, Austria
Travels to Haiti
1990
• Gallery Centre, Vienna
• Castle "Hollenburg", Krems, Austria
• "ABC Galerie", Obernberg/Inn, Austria
Travels to Switzerland and France
1993
• Gallery Prisma, Vienna
• "Mensch und Energie", Kunsthalle Kongresshaus, Graz, Austria
Travels to Mexico and Cuba
1994
• Gallery Prisma, Vienna
• Musée Matisse, France
Travels to the USA
1995
• Gallery Max Bollag, Zurich
• Fondation Lesur, Fresnoy le Graud, France
Travels to India
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Soshana on a ferry to Turkey, 1995 |
Soshana 1999 in Vienna |
1996
• Jewish Community Center, Vienna
Travels in South America
1997
Retrospective, Palais Pálffy, Vienna
1998
• Palais Harrach, Vienna
• "Neue Galerie", Linz, Austria
1999
• "Neue Galerie" Linz, Austria
• Musée Matisse, Le Cateau-Cambrésis, France
2000
• Gallery Prisma, Vienna
• "Kanzleizentrum"/Jewish Community Center, Salzburg
• Gallery Dumont 18, Geneva
2003 - 2004
Lentos Kunstmuseum Linz, "Paris 1945-1965"
2005 - 2008
lived and worked in Vienna, worldwide exhibitions.
September 2nd, 2009 - Soshana received the Merit Award in Gold of the Province of Vienna
They had both suffered the horror and experienced the beautiful sides of the 20th century, said Dr. Andreas Mailath-Pokorny, City Council of Cultural Affairs in his speech. On the occasion of the presentation of high awards of the City of Vienna to the 82year old artist Soshana Afroyim (Merit Award in Gold of the Province of Vienna) and the 87year old psychologist and publicist Dr. Wilfried Daim (Medal of Honour of the Federal Capital) he expressed that both represented “an open-minded, humanistic attitude” even though they had different life stories.
Source: http://www.wien.gv.at/vtx/vtx-rk-xlink?SEITE=020090902009
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Left: City Council of Cultural Affairs Dr. Andreas Mailath Pokorny. Right: Soshana with Christian Kircher, Mag. Magdalena Gut and son Amos |
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May 27th, 2010 - Soshana received the Austrian Cross of Honour of the Republic of Austria for Science and Art. The award was presented to her by Dr. Bernd Hartmann, Austrian Ministry of Education, Culture and Art in the Maimonides Center
October 12th, 2010 "Soshana. Life and Work." - The first comprehensive monograph on Soshanas life and work, edited by Amos Schueller and Angelica Bäumer, was presented in the Austrian National Library. Publishing house: Springer Wien/ NewYork
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| Soshana holds her Austrian Cross of Honour for Science and Art |
For further information please click on the cover |
November 9th, 2010
Opening of the exhibition "Soshana-Lebenszeichen III" in the Prisma Gallery
October 4th, 2011
Exhibition "The Comeback of the Old Spirits" with Soshana at the Academy of Fine Arts, Vienna.
The idea of the production of a movie portraying Soshana was developed in cooperation with her. It shows the artist on her journeys and in her present life, constantly moving from memory to memory.
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Soshana at the opening of an exhibition, Vienna 2011 |
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Soshana at work in her studio, Vienna 2012 |
2011
• "Soshana Retrospective" Gallery Bollag, Zürich/ Switzerland
• Astry Gallery, Sofia, Bulgaria
• "100x100" for the occasion of the 100th birthday of the Gallery Bollag, Zürich/ Switzerland
2012
• "I Am OK" Soshana’s new works – fresh, funky, expressive, and by no means old!
Curated by Leon Naffin and Hoa Luo, Screening of the film „Soshana“ by Cana Bilir-Meier and Julian Paul Stockinger, at GG68, Vienna/ Austria
• "Soshana - An Austrian artist in Paris"Paintings from 1950 to 1960, on the occasion of the artist's 85. birthday, Gallery Lilly's Art, Vienna/ Austria
• "Fluchtlinien. Arts and Trauma", Group Exhibition, Artfestival SOHO in Ottakring, Vienna/ Austria
2013
• "Soshana", Exhibition at the Al-Babtain Library Kuwait
• "Soshana Forever", Exhibition at the Art Couture Gallery Dubai, UAE
• "Collector of Worlds", Exhibition at the Galicia Jewish Museum Krakow, Poland
• "Night over Austria. The annexation 1938 - Flight and Expulsion", Exhibition at the Austrian National Library Vienna/ Austria
• "Soshana & Staudacher. Informel meeting in Paris" at "Wikam", Künstlerhaus Vienna & at Galerie Szaal
• National Museum Bahrain - Art Center
Soshana, President Heinz Fischer, Krasena Tsotsomanska & Amos Schueller
Dr. Johanna Rachinger (Direktorin der ONB) hält die Eröffnungsrede
Soshana's Documentary Film"Everywhere Alone. The Artist Soshana" (covering 85 years of her life) has been finished after five years of intensive work! Produced by Werner Müller, it is a 45- minutes Documentary Film and will be shown at ORF Austrian Broadcasting Cooperation
2014
• "Soshana. A Viennese in Paris", Gallery Szaal, Vienna/ Austria
• "A Situation in Art in the 1950ies", Exhibition at the Galerie del Ponte, Torino/ Italy, Groupexhibition with Pinot Gallizio, Piero Simondo, Sandro Cherchi and Franco Garelli
• "Soshana. A Viennese in Paris" One Month from Soshana's diary, on September 10th 2014 at the Austrian National Library Vienna/ Austria (Premiere), Lection with Music: "One Month" from Soshana's diary
Lection: Hannah Hohloch, Cello: Maria Kainz,
Dr. Johanna Rachinger, Generaldirector of ONB
2nd October 2014: the ORF/3sat-Documentation "Everywhere alone. The Artist Soshana" won the "Silver Dolphin" in the category "Art, music and culture" of the Corporate Media & TV Awards 2014 in Cannes
2015
• Soloexhibition "SOSHANA. A LIFE. WORLDSTORIES", Deutschvilla Strobl at Wolfgangsee/ Austria
• Groupexhibition "Fear", with the 6AM Class of BG/BORG Perchtoldsdorf/ Austria (Mag. Ingrid Mauthner), at the auditorium of the School
• "Soshana. Festival: Bridges between generations", Theater Nestroyhof/Hamakom, Vienna, Soloexhibition and Presentation of the illustrated book Soshana: "I AM OK." blog with danceperformance by Silke Grabinger I Lection with Music "Soshana. A Viennese in Paris"- One Month from Soshana's diary by Hannah Hohloch and Maria Kainz (Cello) I The Documentaryfilm „Everywhere alone. The Painter Soshana"
On Wednesday, 9th December 2015 Soshana died in her 89th year of life in her place of birth Vienna.
"When I paint, I forget everything around me, I become one with the canvas and I express my pain and whatever I feel on this canvas. I feel better then." - Soshana