Hilde Bial-Neurath
The Bial-Neurath Family
Edith London and Hilde Neurath knew each other from their common time in Berlin and they became friends after they met again in Durham. By then Edith London had become an accomplished artist, best known for her abstract paintings and collages. Fritz, as she told in an interview in 1972, “insisted that I should devote myself to my art rather than to my household duties.” She joined the faculty in the Art Department at Duke after Fritz’ death but continued her career as an artist. There were major exhibitions of Edith’s works in Massachusetts, Florida, Delaware, Virginia and New York as well as abroad in Switzerland and Germany. Many of her exhibitions were in North Carolina where she made her home; the latest one in 2014 together with the works of the weaver Silvia Heyden. Edith London died in 1997 at age 93.
We don’t know if it was Hans who asked Edith to make a portrait of his wife or if the painter suggested it herself.
My mother had that painting all her life. It’s not an actual portrait of my mother. It’s not a true portrait but my mother is certainly recognizable. Edith London painted that with a cello. My mother and my father were musicians, something I failed at entirely. The other thing I noticed about this, is that blue was her favorite color. And it is my least favorite because blue to me is a cold color. And I remember in her house there was a lot of blue. The sofa was blue, her bedroom was blue, the covers were blue, thank God the rug wasn’t blue but there was a lot of blue in there. But my mother always treasured this painting, always.