Gertrude Honzatko-Mediz

1893 to 1975

Gertrude Hozatko-Mediz was born to Emilie Mediz Pelikan and Karl Mediz, an artist couple who were familiar figures in the world of Austrian Symbolism.

Gertrude lost her mother at the age of 15 and was raised by her grandparents in Krems, Lower Austria. Deeply affected by the death of her mother, she created works of art influenced by Spiritism and Mysticism. They helped her to maintain mental equilibrium. Her artistic creativity was expressed through a variety of means. In addition to etching, small oil paintings on paper and pastel images, she produced ornamental ink drawings that she signed with her mother’s name. Her impressive portraits of spirits from the 12th century, during the time of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I, also known as Barbarossa, are examples of mediumistic art. These pencil drawings are reminiscent of those done by Margarethe Held. In 1996 Harald Szeemann presented some of her drawings in the “Austria im Rosennetz” exhibition at MAK, the Austrian Museum for Applied Arts in Vienna. Her works can be seen, for example, in the Arnulf Rainer Collection, Austria.

Selected works