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Théo
German nationality
Born near Aachen in 1918
Dies in 1998
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| Théo is raised in a small village. As an adolescent,
he spends most of his time engaged in smuggling. One day, he is caught by
customs officers, who shoot at him. This incident will have an effect on
him for the rest of his life. He withdraws into himself to the point where
he ignores anyone around him. |
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| It is probably at this time that he starts drawing,
mostly caricatures of Church officials. When he does not draw, he takes
long walks. Théo's family physician helps him escape the gas chamber when
Hitler puts in place his plan to exterminate the mentally ill. He is, however,
sterilized. As he grows older, he begins to collect garbage. His family
has trouble keeping him home, and has him hospitalized. Théo is sixty-one
years old when he starts drawing hundreds of felt-tip pen portraits of Hitler
and of other Nazi dignitaries. He adds xenophobic slogans, mixed with series
of numbers indicating the years he connects with the IIIrd Reich (which
is for Théo 3.3.3. Reich). As in the case of Walla, the image and the text
can upset the spectator, but the symbols we think to recognize are part
of his personal mythology and do not carry the meaning we usually apply
to them. His iconographic universe also refers to Biblical scenes or imaginary
tales. In addition, Théo likes to depict historic figures or current events
he discovers in magazines. He communicates with his family only through
his drawings. The ones he does not give away, he hides in a closet, under
his bed or in his clothes. |
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| SEE ALSO: Publications de la Collection de
l'Art Brut, fascicule 17, text of Robert Küppers, Lausanne, 1992. |
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