Working Women: Gerte Hacker & Elise Newman

Gerte Hacker studied painting at CIA but switched to enamels in the 1950’s to support her daughter and developmentally disabled son after her husband’s death.  A marketing wizard, Hacker sold her work to department stores across the country and gained international renown for her craftsmanship and unique enamel renderings.

Elise Newman studied fashion illustration and took her first job as a graphic designer in 1944, working for major regional retailers such as the Guttman Candy Company, the A. Polsky company in Akron, Ohio and the Halle Brothers Co. in Cleveland.  In 1967, she purchased her own gallery, which stood as a flagship institution on Little Italy CLE’s Murray Hill for 30 years (Elise Newman Gallery).

This exhibition not only offers a buffet of colorful, eye catching period artwork, it provides a window onto how women were able to negotiate the world they were given, finding pathways to pursue their passion, and to make it a profession.

On display is diverse work by both Hacker and Newman, including enamels, paintings, textiles, sculpture and prints.

Show Dates:
January 25 – March 2, 2019

Gallery Hours:
Wednesday – Friday, 10am – 4pm
Saturday, 12pm – 4pm and by appointment

For more information on exhibition and artists, and a preview of the work, please visit: http://www.artistsarchives.org/event/working-women-gerte-hacker-elise-newman/

Featured Image: Gerte Hacker, Woman in Purple Top (Detail), 1933, Oil on canvas, Collection of the AAWR