Mission of the Museum Association Ritschl e.V.

Otto Ritschl left behind a significant portion of his oeuvre, which comprises some 1,600 paintings, in his studio-home in Wiesbaden built for him by Bauhaus architect Johann Wilhelm Lehr. In his will, he stipulated that the Museum Association Ritschl e.V., founded by the artist himself, should become heir to the paintings belonging to his estate at time of his death. The statutes of this non-profit association state that its mission is to make a substantial part of Otto Ritschl’s artistic work accessible to the public.
In pursuit of this mission, the Museum Association Ritschl entered into a cooperation agreement with Museum Wiesbaden in 1994, which defines 5 major objectives:

• to compile the Abstract Icons Collection, whose core is formed by Otto Ritschl’s selection of his own works assembled under the title “My Path to Painting” and which shall be placed on permanent loan to the museum,
• to acquire works by other artists holding related artistic positions in order to expand the Abstract Icons Collection,
• to establish the Otto Ritschl Prize,
• to publish scholarship on the work of Otto Ritschl
• to initiate exhibitions of his work at other institutions and the loaning of works to relevant museums and art institutes.

The funds to finance these joint activities are generated by the sale of paintings from the estate of Otto Ritschl.