Brigitte Tübke-Schellenberger, the painter's widow, has died

Brigitte Tübke-Schellenberger, widow of the Leipzig painter Werner Tübke (1929–2004), has died. She died on September 1 at the age of 95, according to a statement from Galerie Schwind citing the family. During the artist’s lifetime, Tübke-Schellenberger had taken on the role of managing and organizing his work. After his death, she preserved her husband’s legacy. Werner Tübke was one of the most famous artists of the GDR.

The former lawyer had married Tübke in Bad Frankenhausen in 1976. A famous, enormous painting by Tübke depicting the German Peasants’ War hangs there. The painter was divorced at the time, and Tübke-Schellenberger already had two sons from her first marriage.

The couple lived in their villa on Springerstraße in Leipzig until the painter’s death in 2004. Today, the location is home, among other things, to the Schwind Gallery, which has also sold works from the Tübke estate. In addition, an art collection featuring works from Leipzig is housed there.

Public memorial service planned

Tübke-Schellenberger managed her husband’s catalog raisonné with great dedication, the gallery reported. She organized exhibitions and could reliably be found every Saturday at the Tübke Foundation—which she founded—in the painter’s former studio, “where she responded resolutely and animatedly to all visitors’ questions.”

According to the gallery, a public memorial service for Brigitte Tübke-Schellenberger will take place on October 30 at 1:15 p.m. in the West Chapel of Leipzig’s Südfriedhof. Werner Tübke is also laid to rest at the cemetery.