The Cosmos of Life: The photographer Annelise Kretschmer. Travelling exhibition at the Jewish Museum of Westphalia

Annelise Kretschmer (1903–1987, Dortmund) is one of the most significant German female photographers of the 20th century. With the traveling exhibition “Cosmos of Life: The Photographer Annelise Kretschmer,” the Regional Association of Westphalia-Lippe (LWL) pays tribute to this artist’s work.

Annelise Kretschmer was one of the first women in Germany to open a photography studio, handling family and work at the same time. Already in the late 1920s, she earned international recognition, having been invited to present her work at the “Film und Studio” in Stuttgart and to publish in numerous magazines. She also joined the “Gesellschaft Deutscher Lichtbildner” (“Society of German Photographers”), but was expelled during the Nazi regime because of her Jewish heritage: Her father was Jewish, therefore she was registered as a so-called “Halbjüdin” (“half-jew”). Accordingly, her option for commissioned work was severely limited since 1933. Despite the increasing discrimination she managed to take her master’s exam in 1936. After the war she re-opened her photography studio in Dortmund and soon became a fixture in the city’s cultural life.

During her career, Annelise Kretschmer took portraits of women, children, artists, industrials, scientists and the working class. In doing so, she developed a visual language that captures people’s essential traits in an authentic and immediate way.

The exhibition “The Cosmos of Life” introduces the artistic work and life of Annelise Kretschmer through 60 reproductions of the collection of the LWL-Museum für Kunst und Kultur in Münster, as well as eight vintage prints of the collection of the Museum für Kunst und Kulturgeschichte Dortmund. Additionally, digital guided tours are available through QR-Codes, exploring various topics in greater depth. The exhibition can be visited at the Jewish Museum of Westphalia in Dorsten from June 28th till October 11th 2026.