Beate "Ati" Gropius Johansen (1926 — September 7, 2014) was a German-born graphic designer, artist, teacher, and illustrator. Her adoptive parents were Modernist architect Walter Gropius and his second wife Ise Frank Gropius, who was Ati's biological aunt. Throughout her career she illustrated 47 books. Her work is now part of various art institutions' collections.
Life and work
Ati Gropius was born Beate Frank in Wiesbaden, Germany. She was adopted by architect and Bauhaus founder Walter Gropius and his second wife Ilse (Ise) Frank when she was nine years old after the death of her biological mother, Ise's sister Hertha Frank.[1][2] She emigrated to the United States with her adoptive parents in 1937,[3] when Walter Gropius came to teach at Harvard University's Graduate School of Design. The family lived at the Gropius House designed by Walter. Ati attended primary and secondary school at nearby Concord Academy.
After completing her studies, she moved to Boston at the age of 21. She then lived in Rome, Colorado, and Chicago before settling in New York City. Her first marriage to designer Charles Forberg ended in divorce. She later married architect John M. Johansen, who would become the last surviving member of the Harvard Five, an architectural group heavily influenced by Walter Gropius.
Ati worked as a designer, teacher, and artist, and illustrated 47 books. She taught workshops based on Albers's Bauhaus design courses at various institutions including the Museum of Modern Art in New York City[6] and the Walter Gropius School in Erfurt. She was also a sponsor of the Bauhaus Archive, which was founded in 1960 by Walter Gropius in Berlin.[3]
