Walter Womacka
Encyclopedia
Walter Womacka was a German
Socialist Realist
artist.
Womacka was born in Obergeorgenthal
, Czechoslovakia
. He lived in East Berlin
for most of his life, and was the head of the School of Art and Design Berlin-Weissensee from 1968 until 1988. In the post-war rebuilding of Berlin, he designed many large public artworks including stained glass
windows using the gemmail
technique and large external mural
s in mosaic
. These artworks showing the socialist
ideal of "ordinary people" contributing to society are found decorating the buildings of government departments and factories. The Haus des Lehrers ("House of Teachers"- Education Department) on Alexanderplatz
in the centre of East Berlin is decorated with a frieze
showing the benefits of education. This work has recently been fully restored after many years of neglect. Womacka's designs have also been used on postage stamp
s. Womacka died in Berlin, Germany.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
Socialist Realist
Socialist realism
Socialist realism is a style of realistic art which was developed in the Soviet Union and became a dominant style in other communist countries. Socialist realism is a teleologically-oriented style having its purpose the furtherance of the goals of socialism and communism...
artist.
Womacka was born in Obergeorgenthal
Horní Jiretín
Horní Jiřetín is a Czech municipality with 1,900 inhabitants in Most District, in the Ústí nad Labem Region in the foothills of the Ore Mountains on the border with Germany.- Geography :...
, Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
. He lived in East Berlin
East Berlin
East Berlin was the name given to the eastern part of Berlin between 1949 and 1990. It consisted of the Soviet sector of Berlin that was established in 1945. The American, British and French sectors became West Berlin, a part strongly associated with West Germany but a free city...
for most of his life, and was the head of the School of Art and Design Berlin-Weissensee from 1968 until 1988. In the post-war rebuilding of Berlin, he designed many large public artworks including stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
windows using the gemmail
Gemmail
Gemmail describes a type of stained glass art developed during the 1930s by French painter Jean Crotti. It differs from traditional stained glass techniques in that the individual pieces of colored glass are not joined by lead came, but overlapped and glued together with a clear substance...
technique and large external mural
Mural
A mural is any piece of artwork painted or applied directly on a wall, ceiling or other large permanent surface. A particularly distinguishing characteristic of mural painting is that the architectural elements of the given space are harmoniously incorporated into the picture.-History:Murals of...
s in mosaic
Mosaic
Mosaic is the art of creating images with an assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other materials. It may be a technique of decorative art, an aspect of interior decoration, or of cultural and spiritual significance as in a cathedral...
. These artworks showing the socialist
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
ideal of "ordinary people" contributing to society are found decorating the buildings of government departments and factories. The Haus des Lehrers ("House of Teachers"- Education Department) on Alexanderplatz
Alexanderplatz
Alexanderplatz is a large public square and transport hub in the central Mitte district of Berlin, near the Fernsehturm. Berliners often call it simply Alex, referring to a larger neighborhood stretching from Mollstraße in the northeast to Spandauer Straße and the City Hall in the southwest.-Early...
in the centre of East Berlin is decorated with a frieze
Frieze
thumb|267px|Frieze of the [[Tower of the Winds]], AthensIn architecture the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Even when neither columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon...
showing the benefits of education. This work has recently been fully restored after many years of neglect. Womacka's designs have also been used on postage stamp
Postage stamp
A postage stamp is a small piece of paper that is purchased and displayed on an item of mail as evidence of payment of postage. Typically, stamps are made from special paper, with a national designation and denomination on the face, and a gum adhesive on the reverse side...
s. Womacka died in Berlin, Germany.