Women's Portraits

Jutta Fischer

Elisabeth/Herta: Please explain about your life why you and Wolfgang moved to England? When and how long you have lived there?

Jutta Fischer: “We were in America in 1961/62 because my husband had a Research Fellowship in Harvard, Mass. USA. He is an Art Historian. I taught French at a school there.

My Jewish father in law lived in London. Together with a business partner as emigrants from Vienna they opened an art gallery ‘Marlborough Fine Art’ and asked my husband to work there with them. Therefore we moved to London and my husband worked from 1963-1993 in this art gallery. In London my two daughters and son were born.

In 1996 we moved back to Vienna into our current apartment.

Through the art gallery we met lots of English and international artists including Oskar Kokoschka who became a good family friend. Also Professor Leopold from the Leopold museum in Vienna came to visit us and whilst he was in London bought art.

When the children were older I worked with a photographer who is a friend of mine in a German and English architectural newspaper. We worked together on many articles including a ten page article in Vogue about Austria.

We kept in touch with Austria and each summer the whole family including grandparents and children met in Austria in a house at Grundlsee at the Salzkammergut.

After the death of my father in law in 1977 I began to work in the gallery which became known as ‘Fischer Fine Art’.

Through the children we also got to know the English culture and the school system. The children went to a Montessori kindergarten that was run by a Viennese lady. In the primary school which the children attend until they are 12 years old, we learnt about the peculiarities of the English school system with its pros and cons. The children studied in London except our daughter Bettina who studied in Vienna at the University of Applied Arts.”

Elisabeth/Herta: What happened after your return to Vienna?

Jutta Fischer: “I went to school at the Catholic Sacré Coeur. After our return to Vienna I had contact with a fellow student and became a member of the ‘Les Anciennes’ (former students) and was later Vice President of Les Anciennes. One of my class-mates, Sister Hildegard Teuschl, began the hospice movement in Vienna where critically ill people are supported through their illness until they die.  

Originally the hospice movement was started in England. My Viennese fellow students asked me to work with them in the hospice movement in Vienna. Unfortunately, I could not work fulltime on this because I had to travel to London regularly for work, which I still do. In London I am also looking after old, Jewish emigrants.

“Fischer’s Fine Art” now operates on a reduced basis. The gallery closed in 1993 but still looks after its artists and also found new employment for the ten staff. The bulk of the remaining paintings, catalogues and paperwork were eventually transferred to Vienna.
My husband did not want to have anything to do with the gallery in Vienna anymore so he started to write books and he left the whole gallery-work to me.”

Elisabeth/Herta: What motivated you to become a social activist?

Jutta Fischer: “In London we helped the Viennese emigrants, some of whom were old or who had poor health. Many of them lived by themselves and had minimal contact with English people. We provided this help on humanitarian grounds with no formal social assistance.

We had a large art auction at Christies in Vienna for the hospice. The paintings were by doctors and nurses. With Elisabeth Marek I am trying to start an art flea market for the ‘Verein Flüchtlingsprojekt Ute Bock’ for migrants in Austria.”

Elisabeth/Herta: How would you like to instil in future generations empathy and social consciousness?

Jutta Fischer: “The most important thing for any generation so that they can live together well is the development of social understanding and responsibility of children beginning with crèche, kindergarten and primary school. So that these skills can be practiced for the whole of life.”

Thank you for the interview

Herta Spitaler and Elisabeth Marek (Interview), Jutta Fischer (Pictures)