Just a few days ago German artist George Baselitz celebrated his 80th birthday. George Baselitz is reviewing the highlights of his past 60 years of work with a retrospective at the Foundation Beyeler in Switzerland, presenting 80 paintings and 10 sculptures from different styles and phases of his art practice.
Baselitz is an important representative of German neo-expressionism, working with other artists such as Markus Lüpertz and Anselm Kiefer, and Gerhard Richter. German neo-expressionism began in the 1960s, and really took off in the 1980s. The theories and ideas of the movement were deeply influenced by the events of WWII, the Cold War, and the Vietnam War. Artworks from this group focused on critical social issues, and questions about expression of German nationality, and have left an indelible mark on contemporary art today.
Georg Baselitz grew up in turbulent times. When he was an adult, he fled to West Berlin and studied at the local art academy. However, because of the post-war terror memories, he always felt upset and sorrow. When he was 20 year-old, in honor of his birthplace, he renounced the original surname and officially changed to Baselitz.
Baselitz held his first solo exhibition in Berlin in 1963. However, the sexual content of the works "Naked Man, 1962" and "Big Night Down the Drain, 1962/63" enraged conservatives party at that time, so the works were taken by the government. It didn’t frustrate Baselitz, instead, he stuck to art creating. "Big Night Down the Drain, 1962/63" depicts a male dwarf who is masturbating, directly showing sexual, violent and brutal. The painting was returned until 1966 and is currently collected by Museum Ludwig Köln in Cologne, Germany.
Later, Baselitz started to invert his paintings. The objects in his paintings are upside down as if there is no gravity. The heavy brush stroke gained some weight for his works, striking a strange balance. However, the upside-down image is like a metaphor for a divided country. The psychological shadow caused by the war is just as the instability and uncertainty brought by the upside-down image.
In addition, Baselitz 's works are often favored by collectors. For example, "Der Hirte, 1966" was sold at Christie's auction in New York in 2011 for 1.1 million US dollars (about NT $ 33 million). And last March, "Follow the Red Flag, 1965" (MIT ROTER FAHNE, WITH RED FLAG) was sold at London Sotheby’s for a personal record breaking 9.08 million US dollars (about NT $ 208 million ). In addition, the works of Baselitz are also frequently seen in art events around the world, such as the Kassel Literature Exhibition, the Sao Paulo Biennale, the Venice Biennale, etc. Even the well-known collectors Andrew and Christine Hall have also collected many works of Baselitz. Baselitz is not only influencer in the art history, but also he is the popular artist in the art market.
This exhibition will be traveling to the Hirshhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden, Washington DC in June 2018.
Georg Baselitz
Exhibition date: January 21, 2018 - April 29, 2018
Venue: Fondation Beyeler
Exhibition date：June 21, 2018- September 16, 2018
Venue：Hirshhorn Museum & Sculpture Garden, Washington DC, USA
Top Image: THE BRÜCKE CHORUS, 1983. Oil on canvas, 280 x 450 cm, Private collection © Georg Baselitz, 2018. Photo: © 2014 Christie’s Images Limited
Image two left top : STILL LIFE, 1976/77, Oil on canvas, 250 x 200 cm. The Museum of Modern Art, New York, gift of Agnes Gund, 1991. © Georg Baselitz, 2018
Photo: © 2017. Digital image, The Museum of Modern Art, New York/Scala, Florenz
Image two left bottom: GEORG BASELITZ AT THE FONDATION BEYELER, 2018 Photo: Matthias Willi
Image two right: ORANGE EATER (IX), 1981. Oil and tempera on canvas, 146 x 114 cm. Skarstedt, New York © Georg Baselitz, 2018. Photo: Friedrich Rosenstiel, Köln
