The artist Renée Sintenis

 

Renée Sintenis (1888-1965), born Renate Alice Sintenis was a German sculptor, medalist and graphic artist , who worked in Berlin. She created mainly small-sized animal sculptures, female nude figures, portraits (drawings and sculptures) and sport statuettes .

Her surname is of Huguenot origin. Her mother was Jewish. The family moved to Berlin in 1905.

When Renée Sintenis (as she called herself) became acquainted with Georg Kolbe in 1910 , she became his model. Inspired by this activity, she began to create female nudes herself, expressive heads such as André Gide and Joachim Ringelnatz , athletes such as the Finnish runner Paavo Nurmi and self portraits in graphic, sculptural and etching.

After 1915, the animal figures were created, which became her artistic life theme. Since she rejected monumentality, it was primarily small-scale sculptures. These works, such as horses, deer, donkeys and dogs, were very popular with the public as they fitted in every purse, were convenient as gifts and could be kept in rooms, however small.

Since 1913, she exhibited her sculptures regularly and was highly valued by her colleagues from the Free Secession, the most important Berlin artists' association. Her friendship with the portrait photographerFrieda Riess helped her to come in contact with famous personalities.

Portrait by Emil Rudolf Weiss

Sintenis won in 1928 the third prize of the Art Competition for the Summer Olympic Games in Amsterdam . 

Under the Nazis, Sintenis and her husband Emil Rudolf Weiss lived with considerable restrictions. She continued to exhibit, although one of her self-portraits was shown in an exhibition as an exemple of Degenerate Art.She was not banned from exhibiting, but, in contrast to her succesful years in the 1920s, her economic situation was difficult, and turned worse when she was forbidden to cast bronze in 1941.

Renée Sintenis died on April 22, 1965. Her tomb is located at the Waldfriedhof in Berlin-Dahlem.

Portrait by Frieda Riess