Kahnweiler biography of albert

 

World War I

In 1914, Kahnweiler fled to Rome to avoid German military service, finally settling in Berne, Switzerland, where he began writing his first book, Der Weg zum Kubismus (The Rise of Cubism), which appeared in 1920.

Unfortunately, his forced wartime absence in neutral Switzerland, due to his German citizenship, led to the closure of his gallery and the confiscation of its stock. In addition it allowed rival dealers - Leonce Rosenberg (1879-1947) and his brother Paul Rosenberg (1881-1959) - to sign contracts with Picasso and others, thus becoming the main source of Cubist art.

It was also during the war that Paul Guillaume (1891-1934) became established as a leading collector in Paris. They also handled the post-war liquidation of Kahnweiler's confiscated stock, and thus extended their holdings of Cubist painting at knock-down prices.

1920-1937

Despite these reverses, Kahnweiler returned to Paris in 1920 with Andr&