Warburg, Aby
WARBURG, ABY. Aby Moritz Warburg (1866–1929) was a German art historian and Kulturwissenschaftler (scholar of cultural studies) who developed new concepts in the understanding of the cultural expression of human consciousness and behavior. Although he was not well known during his lifetime and long after that remained a mere name to all but a small circle of art historians, Warburg has gradually become recognized as a major figure in the study of religion. His importance for contemporary research lies not only in issues connected with iconology; his profound curiosity for both psychology and anthropology allowed him to develop new and successful strategies for deciphering complex and impenetrable imagery, and his interest in the nature of communication and the transformation of the symbolic meaning of signs established him as an exponent of the modern study of symbolism.
Warburg was born in Hamburg on June 13, 1866, the firstborn son of the banker Moritz Warburg and Charlotte Oppenheim Warburg. According to the Warburg legend, Aby Warburg rejected his birthright as his father's successor in the firm at the age of thirteen. He instead demanded not only an allowance according to his financial needs but also the financing of an expensive life devoted to research, which achieved its climax in the public activities of the Kulturwissenschaftliche Bibliothek Warburg (KBW, later known as the Warburg Institute) and the outstanding scholars associated with it.
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