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Back The Hiding Game
Chapters (64)
  1. Cover
  2. Naomi Wood
  3. Dedication page
  4. Epigraph page
  5. 1
  6. WEIMAR, 1922
  7. 2
  8. 3
  9. 4
  10. 5
  11. 6
  12. 7
  13. 8
  14. 9
  15. 10
  16. 11
  17. 12
  18. 13
  19. 14
  20. 15
  21. 16
  22. 17
  23. 18
  24. 19
  25. 20
  26. 21
  27. 22
  28. 23
  29. DESSAU, 1929
  30. 24
  31. 25
  32. 26
  33. 27
  34. 28
  35. 29
  36. 30
  37. 31
  38. 32
  39. 33
  40. 34
  41. 35
  42. 36
  43. 37
  44. BERLIN, 1932
  45. 38
  46. 39
  47. 40
  48. 41
  49. 42
  50. 43
  51. 44
  52. 45
  53. 46
  54. 47
  55. 48
  56. 49
  57. 50
  58. 51
  59. 52
  60. 53
  61. Thank you
  62. Praise
  63. The Hiding Game
  64. Also by Naomi Wood

That week we kept our heads down. Walter was mostly up at the studio while the rest of us attended school meetings. There was talk that the Director was not doing enough: there were fears he would pogrom his own students; get rid of the alien within. It was no secret that he neither wanted too many women nor too many Jews, and that this might be an opportune moment to recast the school. There were petitions and letter-writing campaigns.

I spent my time making murals for the fundraising nights. We were experimenting with different shapes and colours in tension, so that they appeared like a child’s mobile gathering upon a flat plane. We painted in the hall, since none of the ateliers were big enough. Though the Director said the Survey didn’t apply to staff, I knew Kandinsky was worried he was about to be exiled to St Petersburg. Before he’d arrived at the Bauhaus I’d heard he’d not bought a new pair of shoes in eight years. Indeed, I knew Walter could still entice Mrs Kandinsky into a sale of a sketch with merely a tin of corned beef.

‘Why’s Walter not here?’ Kaspar asked, over lunch.

I wanted to tell him about the strange painting, but I didn’t know how to explain my apprehension about a horse, some chickens and a trio of girls. I wondered anyway whether Kaspar hadn’t had enough of my suspicions. Since the Bath-house he too had been distant with me, although that might have been because he had a new girl on the go. ‘There’s a commission at the studio,’ I said. ‘He’s busy with that.’

‘He’s not in trouble? With the Survey? I heard the Director wanted to speak to him.’

‘I think he’s just preoccupied with other things.’

Kaspar frowned. ‘I really don’t know what’s more important than this. Is something funny going on? I haven’t seen him for weeks. He’s not a Communist. His family go back centuries in Detmold. What’s he got to worry about?’

‘I don’t know,’ I said, being honest. ‘I really don’t.’

‘Well, if you see him around, tell him we miss him, won’t you?’

‘I will,’ I said, but I doubted I would see him anywhere but the studio, and I had so firmly cut my ties with Mr Steiner that it was unlikely I was going to bump into him any time soon.

23

Weimar