She was born in
Hagen on 2 August 1862. Her father was a medical doctor. After his early death in 1869, the family moved to
Detmold, where she grew up. Although she had wanted to be a painter since she was a young girl, she was twenty-eight before she was able to pursue her ambitions. In 1890, she enrolled at the Women's Academy of the "" and studied with the landscape painter,
Tina Blau. (standing, 1st from right),
Julie Wolfthorn (seated, 2nd from right),
Jelka Rosen (standing, 3rd from right),
Adele von Finck (bottom center),
Dora Hitz (standing, 1st from left) as art students at
Académie Colarossi, Montparnasse, Paris (circa 1892) In 1891, she moved to Paris, where she studied at the
Académie Colarossi, a popular school for foreign students. There, she befriended the composer,
Frederick Delius, and his future wife, the painter
Jelka Rosen. In 1900, she made the acquaintance of
Auguste Rodin and joined the artistic circle at
Le Dôme Café. Her work never reflected wartime themes, but her correspondences between 1914 and 1918 regularly referenced the
ongoing war. Gerhardi died in Lüdenscheid, Germany on 29 June 1927 == Ida Gerhardi Förderpreis ==