History of the James Loeb Society
– History
– Founding of the Club
In 2000, Dr. Brigitte Salmen curated the wonderful exhibition “James Loeb – 1867 to 1933: Art Collector and Patron.” This sparked an in-depth exploration of this outstanding figure, who had a profound influence on Murnau.
The Beginning
The idea of establishing an institution to support the Hochried Clinic and honor the memory of James Loeb had been in the works for some time. Today, clinics often require additional support, whether financial or in-kind. Since there had been no supporting organization for the clinic until now, it made sense to take the clinic’s history as a foundation and link it to the name James Loeb, so that two main goals were quickly formulated:
- To keep the name James Loeb and his legacy alive and to preserve his “legacy” in Hochried and Murnau.
- To support the Hochried Clinic—more specifically, the children, adolescents, and families who seek help there.
These ideas were then communicated to the circle of friends and at the farewell ceremony for Dr. Hermann Mayer, who had led the clinic for nearly 30 years. The clinic’s sponsoring organization, the Catholic Youth Welfare Service of Augsburg, was also involved and gave its approval.
The association was planned to be founded in 2011, the year Dr. Hermann Mayer left the Hochried Clinic, and was officially established on April 25, 2011 (Easter Monday). The following individuals joined as founding members:
Maximilian and Agathe Weishaupt (Munich), Dr. Hermann Mayer (Director of the Hochried Clinic), Maria Rieger (Murnau) (front row, from left) Gaby Pfluger (Murnau), Martha Mayer (Munich), Viola Nassauer (Uffing) (back row, from left).
The association’s first event took place on July 22, 2011, at Landhaus James Loeb. It was the centennial celebration marking 100 years of Landhaus James Loeb. Christoph Sattler, the grandson of the builder and a third-generation architect himself, gave a lecture on the history of the villa’s construction. The accompanying program featured a chamber concert by the Duo Chougrani from Garmisch-Partenkirchen, performing pieces that James Loeb—who had been a brilliant cellist—had once played in the magnificent terrace room.
In line with the association’s goals, exploring the legacy of James Loeb offers a wide range of opportunities to regularly organize cultural events in Murnau and Munich.