Emy Roeder

Emy Roeder began her studies in Darmstadt in 1912 under Bernhard Hoetger (1874-1949). She then went to Berlin and met artists such as Rudolf Belling and her later husband Herbert Garbe, both also Olympic artists. There, Roeder also joined the “Association of Radical Visual Artists”. In the 1920s she became a renowned sculptor of expressionism and got in touch with numerous well-known artists.

In 1933, Emy Roeder went to Roma with her husband. Although he was a member of the NSDAP (Nazi Party), she was not allowed to exhibit in Germany, so she decided to stay in Italy alone despite financial difficulties. After the liberation of Italy in 1944, she was initially interned by the Allies, but was released through the intercession of her artist friends. It was not until 1950 that Roeder returned to Germany. In Mainz she got a teaching position, an apartment, and a studio and participated in the “documenta I” in 1955. In 1960 she received the Federal Cross of Merit and lived in Mainz until her death in 1971.

Under the Shower. Padula I. was created in 1945/46 as a bronze relief in the format 35.5 x 25 cm. A total of six casts were made. Padula was the name of the camp where Roeder was interned and the relief submitted in 1948 was one of a series that she created from sketches made in the camp.