Olga Fröbe-Kapteyn: Artist, Mystic, and Archivist of Dreams
Olga Fröbe-Kapteyn (1881-1962), a mystic and artist from the Netherlands, compiled a collection of 6,000 symbolic and mythological images at the request of Carl Jung, which is now preserved at the Warburg Institute in London. Her 'meditation drawings' (1926-1934), crafted using ink, gouache, and gold leaf, merge Art Deco elements with sacred geometry. At Tefaf New York, Charles Ede will present three of these pieces alongside a bust of the goddess Hathor. In 1928, Fröbe-Kapteyn established Casa Eranos near Ascona, where she organized symposia on spirituality, with Jung as the inaugural speaker in 1933. The Eranos Cultural Forum remains active today. Her artwork will also be part of the 2025 exhibition 'Fata Morgana: Memories of the Invisible' at Fondazione Nicola Trussardi in Milan.
Key facts
- Olga Fröbe-Kapteyn (1881-1962) was a Dutch artist and mystic.
- She collected 6,000 mythological and symbolic images for Carl Jung's collective unconscious theory.
- The Archive for Research in Archetypal Symbolism is held at London's Warburg Institute.
- Her 'meditation drawings' (1926-1934) combine Art Deco with sacred geometry.
- Charles Ede will show three of her works at Tefaf New York.
- She founded Casa Eranos in 1928 near Ascona, Switzerland.
- The first Eranos symposium in 1933 featured Carl Jung as speaker.
- Her work was included in Fondazione Nicola Trussardi's 2025 exhibition 'Fata Morgana: Memories of the Invisible'.
- Her husband died in a 1915 plane crash, leading her to Ascona.
- Monte Verità in Ascona was a hub for alternative lifestyles, visited by Rudolf Laban, Mary Wigman, Sophie Taeuber-Arp, Jean Arp, DH Lawrence, and Hermann Hesse.
Entities
Artists
- Olga Fröbe-Kapteyn
- Carl Jung
- Sophie Taeuber-Arp
- Jean Arp
- Wassily Kandinsky
- Paul Klee
- Piet Mondrian
- Hilma af Klint
- Rudolf Laban
- Mary Wigman
- DH Lawrence
- Hermann Hesse
- Lenin
- Trotsky
- Margarethe Fellerer
Institutions
- Charles Ede
- Tefaf New York
- Warburg Institute
- Fondazione Nicola Trussardi
- Guggenheim Museum New York
- Ikea
- Eranos Cultural Forum
- Casa Eranos
- Monte Verità
- Financial Times
Locations
- Ascona
- Switzerland
- Lake Maggiore
- Monte Verità
- Milan
- Italy
- Palazzo Morando
- London
- United Kingdom
- New York
- United States