Philanthropy and social justice
Feldberg
Siegbert Feldberg was a prosperous lawyer and clothing manufacturer active in Stettin and Berlin. Over the course of a decade, he built an impressive collection of self-portraits painted by Berlin artists. Feldberg’s collection began in the 1920s with the eccentric idea of supporting struggling artists with clothing. He exchanged coats and suits produced by his family business for self-portraits painted by leading artists of the Weimar period, including Oskar Kokoschka, Käthe Kollwitz, and Erich Heckel. Soon after Hitler came to power, Feldberg and his wife emigrated to India. They returned to Europe in the 1960s. Today, the rare collection is displayed in the Berlinische Galerie.
Portrait of Siegbert Feldberg by Ernst Honigberger. Courtesy of the Feldberg Family.
G&B Feldberg Advertisement. Courtesy of the Feldberg Family.
G&B Feldberg Advertisement. Courtesy of the Feldberg Family.