Georg Baselitz, influential German figurative painter, dies at 88
Georg Baselitz, born Hans-Georg Kern on 23 January 1938 in Deutschbaselitz, died on 30 April at age 88. The Thaddaeus Ropac gallery announced his death without specifying a cause. Expelled from the East Berlin Academy for 'sociopolitical immaturity,' he moved to West Berlin, where he encountered gestural abstraction and European Expressionism. His first solo exhibition in 1963 was closed for obscenity. In 1969, he pioneered inverted painting, severing image from representation. His Neo-Expressionist influence on German artists grappling with national history is profound. Later works included carved sculptures made with axe and chainsaw. His final series, Eroi d’Oro—monumental self-portraits and portraits of his wife Elke Kretzschmar—will open at the Fondazione Giorgio Cini on 6 May during the 61st Venice Biennale, running until 27 September. Baselitz is survived by Elke and sons Daniel and Anton.
Key facts
- Georg Baselitz died on 30 April at age 88.
- Born Hans-Georg Kern on 23 January 1938 in Deutschbaselitz, Upper Lusatia.
- Expelled from East Berlin Academy for 'sociopolitical immaturity.'
- First solo exhibition in 1963 closed for obscenity.
- Pioneered inverted painting in 1969.
- Influenced Neo-Expressionist generation of the 1980s.
- Final series Eroi d’Oro opens at Fondazione Giorgio Cini on 6 May during Venice Biennale.
- Survived by wife Elke Kretzschmar and sons Daniel and Anton.
Entities
Artists
- Georg Baselitz
- Elke Kretzschmar
- Robert Isaf
- Gerhard Richter
- Anselm Kiefer
- Hans-Georg Kern
- Igor Stravinsky
- Jean Fautrier
- Jean Dubuffet
- Auguste Rodin
- Elke
- Wassily Kandinsky
- Kazimir Malevič
- A.R. Penck
- Sol LeWitt
- Donald Judd
- Julian Schnabel
- Sandro Chia
- Francesco Clemente
- Enzo Cucchi
- Willem de Kooning
- Francis Bacon
- Antonin Artaud
- Pablo Picasso
- Chaissac
- Michaux
- Picabia
Institutions
- Thaddaeus Ropac
- East Berlin Academy
- Hochschule für Bildende Künst
- Kunsthistorisches Museum
- Centre Pompidou
- Fondazione Giorgio Cini
- The Art Newspaper
- Dasartes
- Academy of Fine and Applied Arts in East Berlin
- École des beaux-arts de Berlin-Ouest
- Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden Künste Karlsruhe
- musée d'Art moderne de la Ville de Paris
- Museum Ludwig
- Werner & Katz
- Biennale di Venezia
- Reichstag
- Museo Novecento
- Palazzo Medici Riccardi
- Hungarian National Museum
- Comune di Firenze
- Artribune
- exibart.com
- Accademia di Berlino Est
- Die Brücke
- Galerie Thaddeus Ropac
- Académie des Beaux-Arts
- Kunsthistorisches Museum (KHM)
- Documenta
- Thaddaeus Ropac gallery
- Gagosian
- Museo di Palazzo Grimani
- Venice Biennale
- designboom
- Galerie Ropac
- Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris
- Hochschule der Künste
- German Pavilion of the Venice Biennale
Locations
- Deutschbaselitz
- Upper Lusatia
- East Berlin
- West Berlin
- Vienna
- Paris
- Venice
- San Giorgio Maggiore
- Saxony
- Germany
- Berlin
- German Democratic Republic
- Salzburg
- Lake Geneva
- Saxe
- Berlin-Ouest
- Karlsruhe
- Italy
- Cologne
- Bilbao
- Kamenz
- Florence
- Tuscany
- Budapest
- East Germany
- Kassel
- Dresden
- United States
- Charlottenburg
- France
- Bavaria
- Ammersee