Georg Baselitz at 85: Milestones and Global Exhibitions in 2023

Georg Baselitz, born in Kamenz on January 23, 1938, turned 85 and marked the occasion with a video interview for Thaddaeus Ropac galleries, which are organizing multiple exhibitions worldwide throughout 2023. The German artist identifies three milestones guiding his career: art history, artists' relationship with society, and his latest works. Reflecting on his beginnings, Baselitz described his early process as 'digging, drilling, eavesdropping, brooding' to explore what lies behind or beneath, translating his inner world into lines and forms. He emerged in the 1960s with highly expressive figurative paintings. In the interview, he is seen seated between two large abstract canvases, wearing a hat and holding a cane, as images of his creations and youthful photos flash by. Baselitz, known for painting upside down, is now celebrated through a series of exhibitions highlighting his creative courage and contradictory spirit. He stated, 'I was born into a destroyed order, in a destroyed landscape, among destroyed people, in a destroyed society. I did not want to reestablish an order. I saw enough of the so-called order. I was forced to question everything, to be naive, to start again.' The exhibitions take place in New York, Künzelsau, Vienna, Munich, Zurich, and Paris. Baselitz explains they are not retrospectives but divided into sections: one focusing on his drawings, another on his neo-impressionist works, a dialogue with Old Masters, and displays of his latest pieces.