Renate Dollinger

Renate Dollinger was born Rose Renate Sandberger in Breig, a mountain village in Silesia, Germany (1924) She grew up there and in Breslau, fleeing to England on the Kinder-Transport. (1939) She lived in a youth hostel in London for several years, learning English and attending art school. In 1943 she enlisted in the Land Army, and, as a member of the Royal Timber Corps, felled trees in Wales. In 1945 she joined the American forces, entering Germany as a civilian interpreter with the occupying Third Army. After two years of duty and travel there, including a futile search for her mother she came to the United States to join her sister. Renate Sandberger and Gerry Dollinger (1923-2004) met almost immediately at the Oakland Jewish Community Center and were married 6 weeks later. Shortly after the birth of their fourth child, Renate started painting the world of the Shtetle. In 2006, Renate moved to Bothell Washington, where she still resides. Renate Dollinger paints mainly in acrylic and oil, but has also done a considerable amount of work in watercolor, gouache and hand tinted etchings. She has exhibited widely in the Bay Area, and is represented in many private collections throughout the country.