Fritz von Unruh
Born on 10 May 1885Died on 28 November 1970WriterFritz von Unruh began his career in the military, which shaped his pacifist beliefs. During the Weimar Republic, he was not only an author but also a popular speaker.
Konrad Wachsmann
Pioneer of Industrial ConstructionBorn on 16 May 1901Died on 25 November 1980ArchitectThe architect Konrad Wachsmann wanted to bring about a "watershed in construction". As chief architect of a timber factory, he designed prefabricated wooden houses and made a name for himself in the 1920s as a pioneer of industrial construction.
Bruno Walter
Born on 15 September 1876Died on 17 Februar 1962Conductor, Composer“You absolutely have to leave Germany today.” With these words, Elsa Walter convinced her husband, the conductor Bruno Walter, to flee from the Nazis in March 1933.
Helene Weigel
Born on 12 May 1900Died on 6 May 1971ActressFor the actress Helene Weigel, whose worked was strongly tied up with the German language and Germany’s theatrical traditions, exile was a major turning point in life. Weigel only gave very few performances during the 15 years she spent in exile.
Grete Weil
Born on 18 July 1906Died on 14 May 1999Grete Weil found broad public recognition as a writer only in old age. Inspired by the reception and recognition that she enjoyed since the beginning of the 1980s, for example, after being awarded the Geschwister-Scholl-Prize, she published several novels and volumes of short stories.
Kurt Weill
A cantor’s son composes for BroadwayBorn on 2 March 1900Died on 3 April 1950ComposerKurt Weill’s musical beginnings were closely bound up to his home town of Dessau. He grew up in a Jewish family and his father was cantor at the local synagogue.
Peter Weiss
Born on 8 November 1916Died on 10 May 1982Writer, Painter, Film director, DramatistFor the young Peter Weiss the years of emigration from 1933 to 1945 represented his years of development as a writer and painter. He left Germany in 1934 as an 18-year-old with a Czechoslovakian passport on account of his Jewish father's nationality.
Hellmuth Weissenborn
From Leipzig to LondonBorn on 29 December 1898Died on 2 September 1982Painter, Graphic designerThe November pogrom of 1938 and losing his job at the Leipzig Academy because he was married to a Jew prompted painter Hellmuth Weissenborn to flee into exile. At the start of 1939 he arrived in London where he was financially supported by his wife, who had remained in Germany.
Franz Werfel
Born on 10 September 1890Died on 26 August 1945Writer, DramatistWith his expressionistic verse, which dealt with the deliverance and fraternisation of humanity, Franz Werfel celebrated great success in 1911. Humanity and grappling with an ethically-grounded form of Christianity remained – even while in exile – recurring themes for Werfel.
Gustav Wolf
Born on 26 June 1887Died on 18 December 1947Painter, Graphic designerThe painter and graphic artist Gustav Wolf taught at the Baden Art School in Karlsruhe for one year starting in 1920. He then worked as a freelancer and in addition to commercial graphics, created art works, including self-contained graphic series that did not portray the visible world but were rather visionary creations.
