{"product_id":"kurt-schwitter-hutchinson-camp-fred-uhlman-1940-110750","title":"[The Camp no. 13\/14 Almanac 1940-41].","description":"The Camp Almanac 1940-41 is a special end-of-year double issue of The Camp newspaper, produced by detainees of Hutchinson Internment Camp on the Isle of Man, intended to showcase the work of émigré artists and writers detained there whilst also reflecting on the first six months of life at the camp. It includes contributions by several prominent artists, including Kurt Schwitters, who contributed a portrait of The Camp editor Michael Corvin (pseud. Leo Freund).\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eInitially, art materials were scarce in the camp, and all the artists had to improvise to continue to work while interned. Lavatory paper, newspapers, wallpaper, napkins, and tablecloths were all used to write, draw, and print on. Linocut prints were made using strips of linoleum removed from kitchen and bathroom floors, which were cut into using kitchen utensils, and printed using a crude ink made using crushed graphite from pencils or ground brick dust mixed with margarine or the olive oil from tinned sardines. The inked blocks were passed through a laundry mangle, which applied enough pressure to make a satisfactory print onto whatever paper could be found.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSiegfried Oppenheimer, an art dealer associated with the well-known Margraf firm in Berlin, took it upon himself to represent the Hutchinson visual artists and approached the camp commander to accommodate their needs. Oppenheimer was able to secure a promise that the camp commander would supply materials and studio space for 'his' artists, and in exchange, they would stage an exhibition of their work. Two art exhibitions were held at Hutchinson, the first in September, followed by a second in November 1940.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis copy belonged to the artist Fred Uhlman, who fled Germany for Paris in March 1933, moved to London in September 1936, and married Diana Croft two months later. Their house in Hampstead served as a meeting place and haven for refugees and exiles who, like Uhlman, had been forced to flee their homelands. John Heartfield stayed with them for five years. At this time Uhlman co-founded the Free German League of Culture, whose members included Oskar Kokoschka and Stefan Zweig. Uhlman was interned at Hutchinson Camp in June 1940 and released six months later in December.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eUhlman remained in Britain after the war. A selection of the drawings he produced while interned at Hutchinson Camp was published by Jonathan Cape under the title Captivity in 1946. His memoirs, The Making of an Englishman, were published by Victor Gollancz in 1960.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eUhlman's work is represented in the UK in the collections of the Arts Council, the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, the Hatton Gallery in Newcastle, and The Imperial War Museum, The British Museum and the Victoria \u0026amp; Albert Museum in London amongst others.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMimeographed and hand-coloured foolscap leaves (343 x 216 mm), Michael Corvin's inscription to Fred Uhlman dated 30\/12\/40 in blue ink below the preface, occasional scattered foxing. Wire-stitched and bound with what appears to be a curtain tie into the original worn and marked manila wrappers (400 x 240 mm) with 'HC' monogram in pastel mounted to upper side. All copies differ in terms of their content due to the ad hoc nature in which they were assembled and are down to the personalised choices by the person making each copy. This copy has 21 leaves (24 contributions on 27 sides).\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"[SCHWITTERS, Kurt et al.]; [Hutchinson Internment Camp].","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57727623758199,"sku":"110750","price":12500.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0733\/4694\/1233\/files\/110750.jpg?v=1794232399","url":"https:\/\/shapero.com\/products\/kurt-schwitter-hutchinson-camp-fred-uhlman-1940-110750","provider":"Shapero Rare Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}