Leonhard Meisser
Born in 1902.
Died in 1977.
According to the available documents, Leonhard Meisser (1902–1977) emerges as a painter and watercolourist from Chur who, after returning to Switzerland, undertook public commissions for murals and stained-glass windows.
After completing his Matura, he first studied botany at the University of Zurich (1922–1923), a course of study that seems to explain his attention to natural forms in the years that followed. He continued his artistic training at the Académie André Lhote in Paris from 1924 to 1926, where he came into contact with other students of his generation. During his stay in Paris, he shared accommodation for a time with Alberto Giacometti, whom the source identifies as his later mentor.
His practice began with a sustained commitment to drawing: he sought to capture the forms of the Alpine environment in clear outlines. According to the notices, this predilection for line evolved over time, and the line gradually ceased to appear as a mere outline. An enthusiastic watercolourist, Meisser sometimes brought to his oil painting a delicacy and transparency akin to those of watercolour.
The sketchbooks he compiled during his travels served as working material: the sketches were later revisited and developed in the studio.
After the Second World War, he and his wife undertook numerous study trips and summer stays in various places — Paris, Provence, the Camargue, Brittany, Spain, different regions of Italy, Greece and Morocco — which enriched his visual repertoire.
His work was presented at several Swiss institutions, including the Kunsthalle Bern, Kunsthaus Zürich, Kunstmuseum Luzern, Kunstmuseum Bern, Bündner Kunstmuseum, Kunsthaus Glarus and Kunstmuseum Solothurn.
