Alfred Aaron Wolmark (1877-1961)

Alfred Aaron Wolmark (1877-1961) was a painter and decorative artist. He was a pioneer of the New Movement in Art. Wolmark was born into a Jewish family in Warsaw. He emigrated to London and became a British citizen in 1894. Returning briefly to Poland in 1903, he painted works based on Jewish historical subjects. In 1911, under the influence of modern French painting, he executed a series of studies of Breton fisherfolk and harbour life, 1911. He worked in the areas of interior decoration, the theatre, and stained glass, 1911-15. He made a stained glass window for St. Mary's Church in Slough in 1915. He painted a series of cityscapes in New York city, 1919-20. He held many exhibitions in London, New York, and Paris, including portrait drawings at the Lefèvre Galleries, 1928. A retrospective of his work was held at Ferens Art Gallery, Kingston upon Hull in 1975. His paintings are now in many galleries around the world, including the National Portrait Gallery, London, Sheffield and Derby Museum and Art Gallery. He was one of the prime movers in setting up the Ben Uri Art Society, 1915.