By the time he went into exile in 1933, Hans Marsilius Purrmann was already a well-travelled, experienced painter. In 1905, he met Max Liebermann, Max Slevogt, Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse in Berlin. Matisse in particular helped Purrmann find his unique, individual style, which despite intensive preoccupation with Expressionism, Cubism and abstraction remained colourful, representational and suffused with light. He then spent several years in Paris, Rome and on Lake Constance.

As a so-called Französling (a derogatory term for Frenchman) who had been ostracised ever since the Nazis came to power, Purrmann was living on a knife edge as long as he stayed in Germany. His presence at the funeral of Max Liebermann in 1935, which was closely watched by the Gestapo, spelt out his political doom and he fled to Florence. With the assistance of friends, he became the honorary director of the German art foundation Villa Romana, where he was initially able to live and work in safety. With the energetic support of his wife Mathilde Vollmoeller, he succeeded in turning the Villa into a renowned art centre. The creative artists who gathered around Purrmann included several who had been exiled from Nazi Germany such as Toni Stadler, Monica Mann, Rudolf Levy, Heinz Battke, Rudolf Borchart and Hermann Blumenthal. In Germany, Purrmann's works were declared “degenerate” and removed from numerous museums; they have still not been recovered to this day.

Following the German occupation of Italy in 1943, Purrmann fled for one last time, this time to Montagnolo, near Lugano, Switzerland. Here he met Hermann Hesse, who was to become his artistic companion. From 1955, Purrmann embarked on a process of artistic rehabilitation and his works were displayed at the first Documenta exhibition in Kassel.

Further literature:
Billeter, Felix / Wagner, Christoph (Hg.): Neue Wege zu Hans Purrmann. Berlin: Gebr. Mann Verlag 2016.
Billeter, Felix (Hg.): Hermann Hesse; Hans Purrmann. Briefe 1945–1962. Berlin: Fischer 2011.
Lenz, Christian / Billeter, Felix: Hans Purrmann. Die Gemälde II. 1935–1966. Werkverzeichnis. München: Hirmer Verlag 2004.
Schierz, Kai Uwe (Hg.): Hans Purrmann (1880–1966). Die Farben des Südens. Petersberg: Michael Imhoff Verlag 2015, S. 11-19.
Vogel, Annette: Hans Purrmann. Kolorist der Moderne (Ausstellungskatalog Kopenhagen/Copenhagen, Kunstforeningen GL STRAND 2019 / Heilbronn, Kunsthalle Vogelmann 2019/20), München: Hirmer 2019.

Selected works:
„Allegorie auf und Kunst und Wissenschaft“ (Allegory of Art and Science, triptych for the council chamber in Speyer), 1932, tempera on canvas, side panels 245 x 130 cm, central panel 245 x 346 cm, town hall, Speyer
Interior with two women, 1933 (?), tempera on canvas, 130 x 116.5 cm, private property