Georg Baselitz

Georg Baselitz (born 23 January 1938) is a German painter. He studied in East Germany, before moving to what was then West Germany. Baselitz's style is interpreted by the Northern American critics as Neo-Expressionist, but from a European perspective, it is more seen as postmodern.

His career was boosted in the 1960s after police took action against one of his paintings, (Die große Nacht im Eimer), because of its provocative, offending sexual nature.

Life

Baselitz was born 23 January 1938, as Hans-Georg Kern in Deutschbaselitz (now a part of Kamenz, Saxony), in what was later to be East Germany. His father was an elementary-school teacher and the family lived in the local schoolhouse. Baselitz first encountered art in albums of nineteenth-century pencil drawings in the school library. He also assisted nature photographer Helmut Drechsler on occasional ornithological shoots.
1950-1957

In his early life, his family moved to the county town of Kamenz. Baselitz attended the local school, in the assembly hall of which hangs a reproduction of the 1859 painting Wermsdorfer Wald by Louis-Ferdinand von Rayski, an artist whose grasp of realism was a formative influence.[1] He read the writings of Jakob Böhme. At the ages of 14 and 15, he painted portraits, religious subjects, still lifes and landscapes, some in a futuristic style. In 1955, he applied to study at the Kunstakademie in Dresden but was rejected. In 1956, he passed the entrance exam to study forestry at the Forstschule in Taranth and successfully applied to study at the Hochschule für bildende und angewandte Kunst in East Berlin. He studied painting under professors Walter Womacka and Herbert Behrens-Hangler, and befriended Peter Graf and Ralf Winkler (later known as A. R. Penck). After two semesters, he was expelled for "sociopolitical immaturity." The next year he successfully applied for a place at West Berlin's Hochschule der Künste and continued his studies in Professor Hann Trier's class, a creative environment largely dominated by the gestural abstraction of Tachism and Art Informel, affecting a certain orientation towards Paris amongst both staff and students.[1] He immersed himself in the theories of Ernst Wilhelm Nay, Wassily Kandinsky and Kasimir Malevich. During this time he became friends with Eugen Schönebeck and Benjamin Katz. Andreas Franzke gives his primary artistic influences at this time as Jackson Pollock and Philip Guston. Conversely, he argues that Baselitz found the work of Barnett Newman inaccessible, as well as that of Mark Rothko.[1]
1958-1963

In 1958, after moving from East Berlin to West Berlin, Baselitz met his future wife, Elke Kretzschmar. He also produced his first original works in a distinct style of his own, among them the imaginary portraits "Uncle Bernhard"/ "Onkel Bernhard." In the same year, he started work on the "Rayski-Head"/ "Rayski-Kopf" series. In 1961, he adopted the name Georg Baselitz in a tribute to his home town. In the same year, he is admitted to the Hann Trier master class. In 1962, he married Elke Kretzschmar and they had a son named Daniel. He also completed his studies at the Akademie. In 1963, Baselitz's first solo exhibition at Galerie Werner & Katz, Berlin, caused a public scandal. Two of the pictures, "The Big Night Down The Drain"/ "Die große Nacht im Eimer" (1962/63) and the "Naked Man"/ "Nackter Mann" (1962), are seized by the public prosecutor. The ensuing court case did not end until 1965.
1964-1969

Baselitz spent the spring of 1964 at Schloß Wolfsburg and produced his first etchings in the printing shop there, which were exhibited later that year. The next year, he won a six-month scholarship to study at the Villa Romana in Florence. While there, he studied Mannerist graphics and produced the "Animal Piece"/ "Tierstück" pictures. After returning to West Berlin, he worked until 1966 on the "Heroes"/ "Helden" group, which includes the large-format composition "The Great Friends"/ "Die großen Freunde." In 1966, his second son, Anton, was born, and the family moved to Osthofen, near Worms. Through early 1969, he produced further large-format "Foresters"/ "Waldarbeiter" pictures. In 1969, using Wermsdorfer Wald by Louis-Ferdinand von Rayski as a model, he paints his first picture to feature an inverted motif, "The Wood On Its Head"/ "Der Wald auf dem Kopf."
1970-1975

In the 1970s, Baselitz exhibited regularly at Munich's Galerie Heiner Friedrich. Most of the works he produced during this time were landscapes themed as pictures-within-a-picture. In 1970, at the Kunstmuseum Basel, Dieter Koepplin staged the first retrospective of drawings and graphic works by Baselitz. At the Galeriehaus in Cologne's Lindenstraße, Franz Dahlem puts on the first exhibition of pictures with upside-down motifs. In 1971, the Baselitz family once again moved, relocating to Forst an der Weinstraße. Georg used the old village school as studio and started painting pictures featuring bird motifs. He exhibited several times in the next few years around Germany. He also participated in the 1972 documenta 5 in Kassel. This same year he began using a fingerpainting technique. He then began painting landscapes until 1975, chiefly based on motifs from around Deutschbaselitz. In 1975, the family moved to Derneburg, near Hildesheim. Baselitz visited New York for the first time and worked there for two weeks. He also visited Brazil, participating in the 13th Biennale in São Paulo.
1976-1980

In 1976, Baselitz set up an additional studio in Florence, which he used until 1981. In 1977, he began working on large-format linocuts. He began teaching at the Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden Künste in Karlsruhe, where he is appointed professor in 1978. From 1978 until 1980, he worked on diptychs using the tempera painting technique (combinations of motifs), multipart pictures (series of motifs), and large-format individual works such as "The Corn Gleaner"/ "Die Ährenleserin," "Woman Clearing Away Rubble"/ "Trümmerfrau," "Eagle"/ "Adler" and "Boy Reading"/ "Der lesende Knabe." The works become more abstract, with scriptural elements predominating. In 1980, he showed his first sculpture at the Venice Biennale.
1981-1989

In 1981, Baselitz set up an addition study in Castiglione Florentino, near Arezzo, which he uses until 1987. His work is exhibited in New York for the first time in 1981. By 1982, he began devoting more time to sculpture, in addition to several exhibitions. In 1983, he began using Christian motifs in much of his artwork, and completed the major composition "Dinner in Dresden"/ "Nachtessen in Dresden". In the same year, he took up a new professorship at the Hochschule der Künste Berlin. In 1986, in recognition of Baselitz's achievements, he was awarded the Kaiserring by the city of Goslar. Through the 1980s, Baselitz's work is exhibited frequently in Germany. In 1989, the title Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres was conferred upon Baselitz by French Minister of Arts Jack Lang.

1990-2009

In 1990, at the Nationalgalerie im Alten Museum in Berlin, the first major exhibition of Baselitz's works in East Germany was staged. In 1992, he resigned from the Akademie der Künste in Berlin. In 1993, he designed the set for Harrison Birtwistle's opera "Punch and Judy," staged under the direction of Pierre Audi at the Dutch Opera in Amsterdam. He also took part in the International Pavilion at the Venice Biennale with the "Male Torso"/ "Männlicher Torso" sculpture, accompanied by oversized drawings. In 1994, Baselitz designed a stamp for the French postal service. He also produced his first ground gold picture that year. In 1995, the first major retrospective of Baselitz's work in the US is staged at the Guggenheim in New York City. This retrospective is also exhibited in Washington, D.C. and Los Angeles. Throughout the 1990s, his work was exhibited frequently throughout Europe.In 2002,retrospective of Baselitz's work in Art Gallery of Yapı Kredi Bank in [Istanbul].

Baselitz currently lives and works near Munich and in Imperia. He recently sold his castle in Derneburg.

His work was exhibited in London, at the Royal Academy of Arts in late 2007, and in the White Cube gallery in 2009.
2010-2013

From 21 November 2009, to 14 March 2010, the Museum Frieder Burda and Baden-Baden’s Staatliche Kunsthalle exhibited a comprehensive survey of the artist, featuring approximately 140 works. "Baselitz. A Retrospective" was also presented at the two neighbouring museums, with the Museum Frieder Burda displaying "50 years of painting", the Staatliche Kunsthalle "30 years of sculpture".

In a 2013 interview, Baselitz was quoted as saying, "women don’t paint very well. It’s a fact." Citing the comparative lack of commercial success of work by women artists in the most expensive markets as proof, he stated, "as always, the market is right. Women simply don't pass the test." [2]

Baselitz's statements elicited rebuttals from art historians and critics, including Sarah Thornton, author of Seven Days in the Art World, who countered, "[t]he market gets it wrong all the time. To see the market as a mark of quality is going down a delusional path. I’m shocked Baselitz does. His work doesn't go for so much."

The record then for a painting by Baselitz was £3.2 million, while the record for a painting by Yayoi Kusama, a female artist, was $7.1 million. [3]
Style

In the 1970s, Baselitz was part of a group of Neo-Expressionist German artists, occasionally identified as "Neue Wilden," focusing on deformation, the power of subject and the vibrancy of the colors. He became famous for his upside-down images. He is seen as a revolutionary painter as he draws the viewer’s attention to his works by making them think and sparking their interest. The subjects of the paintings don’t seem to be as significant as the work’s visual insight. Throughout his career, Baselitz has varied his style, ranging from layering substances to his style, since the 1990s, which focuses more on lucidity and smooth changes.[4]
Honours and awards

This article incorporates information from the equivalent article on the German Wikipedia.

1964: Villa Romana Prize
1968: ars viva prize of the Cultural Committee of German Business
1984-92: Member of the Academy of the Arts, Berlin
1986: Goslar Kaiser Ring
1987: Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
1992: Officier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
1999: Honorary Professor at the Royal Academy of Arts, London
1999: Art Prize Rhenus Mönchengladbach
2001: Julio González Prize Valencia
2002: Commandeur de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
2003: Lower Saxony State Prize
2004: Praemium Imperiale
2004: Honorary Professor at the Accademia delle Arti del Disegno in Florence
2005: Austrian Decoration for Science and Art[5]
2006: Honorary Citizen of the city of Imperia
2008: B.Z. Culture Prize
2009: Full member of the Bavarian Academy of Fine Arts
2009: Cologne-Fine-Art Award of the Association of German Galleries and Editions

Works

See List of works by Georg Baselitz
Bibliography

Georg Baselitz: Collected Writings and Interviews, edited by Detlev Gretenkort. Ridinghouse, London 2010.

Georg Baselitz. Bilder, die den Kopf verdrehen. Seemann, Leipzig 2004. ISBN 3-86502-089-5

Georg Baselitz. Paintings 1962-2001, edited by Detlev Gretenkort, mit einem Essay von Michael Auping, Milano 2002

Georg Baselitz. Retrospektive 1964–1991, edited by Siegfried Gohr. Hirmer, Munich 1992. ISBN 3-7774-5830-9

Ich will es noch einmal schaffe Interview with Georg Baselitz, in art magazin 3/2006, S. 36-43

Christian Malycha Das Motiv ohne Inhalt. Malerei bei Georg Baselitz 1959-1969. Bielefeld 2008. Kerber Artbooks. ISBN 978-3-86678-131-3

References

Franzke, Andreas (1989). George Baselitz. Munich: Prestel-Verlag. p. 17. ISBN 3-7913-0947-1.
"German Artist Georg Baselitz: "My Paintings are Battles", interviewed by Susanne Beyer and Ulrike Knöfel, Der Spiegel, January 25, 2013".
"What’s the biggest problem with women artists? None of them can actually paint, says Georg Baselitz, Nick Clark, The Independent, February 6, 2013".
"Georg Baselitz at Lausanne's Fondation de lHermitage". ARTINFO. 5 July 2006. Retrieved 2008-04-21
"Reply to a parliamentary question" (pdf) (in German). p. 1707. Retrieved 4 December 2012.

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