Kathleen Margaret Sauerbier (21 January 1903 – 11 March 1991) was a South Australian pre and post-war Modernist artist who painted landscapes, portraits and still-life, mainly in oils.
Her paternal grandfather, Christian Johann Sauerbier (1814–1893) had come to South Australia in 1840 and by the 1850s he had settled in Happy Valley, where he acquired over 800 acres of land.
She met her best friend Audrey Sayers at the school and they shared a love of art studying under the drawing teacher Miss E. M.
One of her early pencil drawings was included in an exhibition at the Farmers Art Gallery in Sydney from 17 to 24 November 1924 held under the auspices of the Society of Artists.
Sauerbier, and her husband, purchased the property from Geoffrey Ring in 1940 and used it as her holiday house, which she visited several times a year to paint her favourite landscapes and beach scenes.
Her close artist friend Horace Trenerry had also moved to Port Willunga in 1934 and it is said that he lived a bohemian lifestyle there, often squatting in empty houses in the district.
She also made friends with her neighbour John Dowie whose family had the holiday cottage next door, and who was introduced to her by Ivor Hele, another artist who also resided in the area.
In Melbourne, Sauerbier became a member of The Contemporary Arts Society (CAS) and started designing fabric, textiles and jewellery.
Sauerbier sold the Port Willunga property in 1952 to her close friends, Edward Hayward and his wife Ursula of Carrick Hill.
One of her works was featured in an exhibition at the Art Gallery of South Australia called Modern Australian Women: paintings and prints 1925-1945 curated by Jane Hylton.
[27][28] The Painted Coast exhibition at the Art Gallery of South Australia in 1998 was curated by Jane Hylton and a catalogue was produced.
[29] From 9 March to 26 June 2011, there was a major retrospective exhibition of 40 artworks at Carrick Hill called Kathleen Sauerbier: A Modern Pursuit.