Born in Gera, Germany in 1925, Karl Weschke’s childhood was one of hardship. He found his first sense of belonging with the Hitler Youth and soon after joined the Luftwaffe at the age of 17, which ultimately led to him being taken to the UK as a prisoner of war in 1945.
Four years later, Weschke enrolled at Saint Martin’s School of Art in London, and despite only lasting one term, he solidified his connection to the country and put him on course for his future with the St Ives School.
While living in London, Weschke met artist Bryan Wynter who encouraged a move to Cornwall in 1955, where Weschke remained for fifty years. From this date, he truly became a painter. Inspired by the natural beauty of the local landscape, he blended this with a hostile painterly application reminiscent of his complex upbringing.
This duality became a frequent theme of his work in the 1960s and 1970s, such as in his 1974 painting The Wave, which is both tranquil and quiet, yet dark and brutal with existentialist sensibilities. His work demonstrates the complexity of artists working in St Ives during this period, and how they turned to the landscape in an attempt to understand the changing world around them.
