Henryk Berlewi

Born 1894 in Warsaw. Supported by his mother, he found an artistic vocation very young. At the age of 12, he studies at the fine arts school in Warsaw. 1909 enrolls to the art school in Antwerpen, 1911 changes to Paris. 1913 moves back to Warsaw, works with Polish futurists.

1922-1923 stays in Berlin. 1922 participates at the Novembergruppe exhibition. Along with Adler he is chosen to represent Jewish artists from Eastern Europe at the Congress of International Progressive Artists. Meets El Lissitzky, Viking Eggeling (to whom Berlewi devoted article published in 'Albatross' in 1922), and many others (Moholy-Nagy, van Doesburg, Richter, van der Rohe). May-Sep 1923 presents his first 'Mechano-Faktura' compositions in the Novembergruppe section of the Grosse Berliner Kunstaustellung.

November 1923 returns to Warsaw. With Strzeminski founds a constructivist group Blok. In his review of the exhibition which accompanied the Congress in Dusseldorf, published in 'Nasz Kurier', states that expressionism is obsolete and was replaced by Novembergruppe's dada and by constructivism. March 1924 publishes his abstract art manifesto, Mechano-Faktura (written between 1922 and 1924), on rhythms of geometrical shapes and pure colour giving the illusion of movement and vibration, prefaced by the writer Alexander Wat; and organises the first mechanofaktura exhibition at the Austro-Daimler Automobile Salon. Summer 1924, invited by Herwarth Walden, founder of the Der Sturm magazine and gallery, to exhibit his mechanofaktura works in Berlin; the German version of his manifesto gets published. 1924 established Reklama-Mechano advertising agency, that—among its rare realizations—worked on the Plutos chocolate folder.

1926 he quits his research and returns to figurative art and works as a set designer. 1927 settles in Paris. 1928-1938 travels through Belgium and does a few portraits of the political and literary world. At that time, learns that he is seriously ill, and stops the artistic activity whatsoever.

1942 leaves Paris, finds refuge in Nice and enters the French Resistance (1943-1944). 1947 returns to painting. Wanting to "reintroduce the object", he makes still lives inspired by the French masters of the 17th century.

1957, the exhibition on the pioneers of abstract art in Poland at the Denise René gallery incites him to resume his researches on mechanofaktura. Dies 1967 in Paris.

Publications

• Magdalena Frankowska, Artur Frankowski, Berlewi, 160 pages. [1]

Henryk Berlewi Archive, Frankfurt am Main