Elsa von Freytag-Loringhoven: The Baroness Who Pioneered Performance and Conceptual Art
Born Elsa Hildegard Plötz in Swinemünde, German Empire, Elsa von Freytag-Loringhoven was a pioneering figure in performance and conceptual art. At the age of 18, she escaped to Berlin, where she embraced a liberated lifestyle, worked as an art model, and had marriages with architect August Endell and translator Felix Paul Greve. In 1910, she relocated to the U.S. with Greve, but he left her after a year. By 1913, she had settled in New York, forming connections with artists such as Marcel Duchamp. After marrying Baron Leopold von Freytag-Loringhoven, she crafted extravagant dresses from found materials. Her sculptures and poetry, featured in The Little Review, foreshadowed Pop Art. She passed away in Paris in 1927, inspiring artists like Valie Export and Lady Gaga.
Key facts
- Elsa von Freytag-Loringhoven was born Elsa Hildegard Plötz in Swinemünde, German Empire (now Świnoujście, Poland).
- She moved to Berlin at 18, worked as an art model and variety dancer, and led a promiscuous lifestyle.
- She married architect August Endell, then translator Felix Paul Greve, and later Baron Leopold von Freytag-Loringhoven.
- She assisted Greve in staging a suicide to escape creditors, later joining him in the US in 1910.
- In 1913 she moved to New York and befriended Marcel Duchamp, Man Ray, Berenice Abbott, and Djuna Barnes.
- She created flamboyant dresses from found objects and wore them daily, leading to police arrests.
- Her sculptures like God and Portrait of Marcel Duchamp used found objects, influencing Pop Art and conceptual art.
- She died in Paris in 1927 and was largely erased from art history, but is now seen as a pioneer of performance art.
Entities
Artists
- Elsa von Freytag-Loringhoven
- Marcel Duchamp
- Man Ray
- Berenice Abbott
- Djuna Barnes
- August Endell
- Felix Paul Greve
- Frederick Philip Grove
- George Biddle
- Claude McKay
- Theresa Bernstein
- Margaret Anderson
- Jean Heap
- Valie Export
- Marina Abramović
- Lady Gaga
- Doja Cat
- Paul I. Hjartarson
- Douglas O. Spettigue
- Charles Sheeler
Institutions
- The Little Review
- Wanamaker's
- J. Paul Getty Museum
- Francis M. Naumann Collection
- Louise and Walter Arensberg Collection
- Philadelphia Museum of Art
- Mark Kelman Collection
- University of Maryland Libraries
- Manitoba Historical Society Archive
- Library of Congress
- Bettman/Corbis
- Man Ray Trust ARS-ADAGP
- WikiArt
- The Brooklyn Rail
Locations
- Swinemünde
- German Empire
- Świnoujście
- Poland
- Berlin
- Germany
- Rome
- Italy
- Dachau
- Munich
- Kentucky
- United States
- New York
- New York City
- NY
- USA
- Paris
- France
- Zurich
- Switzerland
- Washington
- DC
- Los Angeles
- CA
- College Park
- MD
- Philadelphia
- PA