On May 21, 1909, an infant named Berta Hummel was born into a deeply religious family in Bavaria, Southern Germany. She showed her talent by drawing pictures of children in her village and designing priests’ vestments. At the age of 18, she enrolled in the famous Munch State School of Applied Arts, studying art history, watercolor, oil painting, and textile design.
Children were largely the subjects of her drawings, while religion was also important to her.
Four years later, Berta entered the convent of the Siessen Order, where she took the name Maria Innocentia. She enjoyed teaching art to kindergarteners while leading the convent’s Vestments Department, designing clerical robes, church altar cloths, and banners. Her art captured the innocence and simplicity of childhood, animals, and everyday life.
“I want to share happiness!” ― Berta Hummel
Hummel’s illustrations were made into postcards and became popular in Germany. They caught the attention of Franz Goebel when he was visiting a shop in Munich in December 1933. As a porcelain manufacturer and leader of W. Goebel Porzellanfabrik, he wrote to Hummel and secured exclusive rights to translate her artwork into figurines. In 1935, Goebel displayed the first series at the Leipzig Trade Fair, a major international trade show.
Combining Hummel’s artistic style and Goebel’s handcrafting tradition, they captured the most precious moments in life — children in free spirit, a mother’s prayer with her baby, the vibrant colors… Simple and sublime, these images stood in striking contrast with the country in turmoil. It was a beam of light shining through an endless night, a reminder of what hope looks like for people suffering wartime chaos.
Following the end of WWII, the fame of Hummel figurines surged when stationed American troops in West Germany started dispatching them as gifts to their loved ones back home. The figurines' association with memories and emotions of American soldiers further prompted them to become a highly sought-after collectible. Art, once again, transcended borders and nationalities, in a theme shared by all humanity.
Hummel continued to create her illustrations until she was struck down by tuberculosis in 1946, just 1 year after WWII ended. In her 37 years, she witnessed 2 World Wars, but never stopped picturing what it would have been in a moment of peace — the little things in life.
To this day, her art has been exhibited in museums across Germany and valued by collectors around the world.