Karl Baumann

Karl Herman Baumann (December 26, 1911 – January 30, 1984) was an American artist of German origin. Baumann was a leading California Abstract Expressionist, a noted professor of painting at the California College of the Arts and teacher at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Life Karl Baumann was an American painter, commercial artist, printmaker and noted teacher. He was born in 1911 in Leipzig, Germany. His father, Willie Baumann, came from a family of wealth, while his mother, Augusta Baumann, came from a more poor background. Before World War I broke out, Willie took his family to America and settled in New York, hoping to find a better life for his wife and son. They eventually separated and Willie moved to San Francisco to work for Schmidt Lithograph Karl stayed with his mother, who worked by making postcards and toy soldiers. Augusta would eventually contract lead poisoning and die due to tuberculosis in 1916. Karl spent the rest of his childhood with his maternal grandparents and it was there that he got his inspiration to do art from his grandfather. Karl started to draw when he was five years old with no formal training. He would often draw with colored pencils and would initially draw pictures of soldiers before becoming more invested in plants and animals. In his childhood, he would take walks with his grandfather, which brought out his love for nature. During these walks, he would often pick up and collect rocks and wood, as well as learn the name of trees. Eventually, later in his life, his studio was filled with objects relating to nature such as aquariums, plants, rocks, woods and sea shells he collected while walking through the beach and Golden Gate Park. After the war, In 1929, Karl would eventually be reunited with his father Willie, who had saved enough money to send for Karl. They had limited contact between each other due to Willie's illness. Karl would join his father at the Schmidt Lithograph and work there. Five years later, Karl would marry a woman called Naomi Pratt and would eventually have a son named Nicholas. Karl was eventually fired from his job due to his pro-union beliefs, which left him the chance to pursue his most important option in his career; to work for the WPA as an easel painter. In 1936 the WPA employed Karl Baumann as an easel painter. Due to his environment which consisted of being surrounded by artists, Baumann invested all of his energy to his paintings and began to explore nature more.