Estonian born graphologist and Jungian analyst. Author of the well known book: Soul and Handwriting (1948) which was translated into many languages. She was born as Anja Mendelssohn in Dorpat in Estonia in 1889. Shelater became Ania Adamkiewicz- Mendelssohn, then Ania Teillard. Her father was a university professor of Sanskrit and she grew up in a intellectually stimulating environment. She was the sister of Georg Mendelsohn, another writer on graphology (who was a student of Ludwig Aub, Klages and Pulver).
In the Twenties, she studied under Klages and took part in graphological research which was carried out in Europe at this time, maintaining professional relationships with Pulver and Saudek in addition to Crépieux-Jamin, the father of French graphology.
Ania was part of the early convergence between graphology and psychology that took place in Germany, France and Switzerland around 1930. Professor Gille-Maisani wrote: " in France Dr. Pierre Menard introduced the notion of repression: in Germany Ania Mendelssohn (Teillard) introduced the Freudian Stages: in Switzerland Max Pulver developed the theory of Symbolism" (1994 Pulver translation foreword pg.7)
A defining moment for Ania Teillard was the psychoanalytical training she received in Zurich by C G Jung himself and at this point in time she started to develop the new graphological language in connection with the theory of the psychology depth. She is said to have worked with Jung for over 20 years. She will be remembered for introducing Jung’s Psychological Types to graphology in a lecture in November 1945 and her numerous articles in the french society journal.
She wrote on this subject: "I was among the first to erect a bridge towards the psychoanalysis. Since this was a foundation of my own vision of the world (my scale of value), I chose depth psychology. And I made it the basis of my graphological analyses.
Teillard’s contribution to the revival of the graphological studies was thus considerable: she aimed to overcome the barriers between the various European schools of thought, to fusetogether different research methods. At the same time she refreshed graphology by introducing psychoanalysis. She wrote: "graphology cannot remain a outsider with this evolution, there is no danger insulation and sclerosis".
She died in Paris on 17th January 1978, after a lifetime of promoting the study and the furthering this knowledge. She had devoted herself to the progression of graphology to give a full understanding of the person. At the time of her death she was Vice-President of the Societe Francaise de Psychologie Analytique.
La Graphologie No 234 April 1999 pp29-42
Teillard A (1952) Handschriftendeutung. Lehnen Verlag, Munich.
Teillard A (1948) L'Âme et L'Écriture. Editions Traditionnelles, Paris.
Teillard A (1993) The Soul and Handwriting. Scriptor, London.
Teillard, Ania. Attempted Analysis Of Sigmund Freud's Handwriting. Translated from the French by Edward B. O'Neill. (17 p.)
Teillard, Ania. A Few Aspects Of Feminine Psychology. Translated from the French by Edward B. O'Neill. (33 p.)
Teillard, Ania. The Film Stars. Translated from the French by Edward B. O'Neill. (17 p.)