Exhibition Detail - Samuelis Baumgarte Galery

About the exhibition

At the beginning of spring, the Samuelis Baumgarte Galerie is looking forward to the extensive group exhibition “2021 reloaded” with an inspiring dialogue between established positions such as Otto Piene, Heinz Mack, Bernard Schultze, Karl Otto Götz and Fred Thieler and contemporary artists such as Astrid Lowack, David Magán, Hans-Jörg Mayer, Phil Stein, Stephan Plenkers, Christine Schindler and Peter Zimmermann.

The three outstanding German Informel painters Karl Otto Götz (1914-2017), Bernard Schultze (1915-2005) and Fred Thieler (1916-1999) were united by the desire for a new start in style after the Second World War. The geometrically abstract was abandoned by the founding members of the "Quadriga", Götz and Schultze, as well as by Thieler, who belonged to the group "ZEN 49", in favor of flowing colors and form instability, as in the capital tryptych Nachtflug II, 1995 by Fred Thieler. Through the protagonists of our exhibition, Götz, Schultze and Thieler, the Informel movement became the mouthpiece of a generation of young artists after 1945 who knew how to set a shining example of dramatic and lyrical colourfulness in the post-war period.

The multi-faceted work show puts the informals of the 20th century in a visual aesthetic dialogue with outstanding works by the important Zero artists Otto Piene and Heinz Mack as well as contemporary representatives of an individual artistic style.

Peter Zimmermann (* 1956) works with complex overlays in his characteristic works. First, the artist selects a photographic or art-historical motif for his work. This is alienated, interpreted, recomposed and first and foremost abstracted through the use of the computer. His passion for flowing color fields that spread across the canvas repeatedly results in a virtuoso intensity of the pictorial space, as in mirage, 2018, for example.

The works of the ZERO artist Heinz Mack (* 1931) capture the light on the canvas and let the viewer literally feel the warmth and radiance of the colors. The implementation and interpretation of light and refraction is the central element of his artistic work. In the works on display, such as Reflexion of Sky, 2012, the play of light is implemented in a particularly impressive way. Accompanying this, the Fresnel lenses of the stele Die gläserne Kette (The glass Chain), 2002 take in the surroundings and the light in a multifaceted way and create individual visual impressions that depend on the position of the observer.

The Spanish artist David Magán (* 1979) also works with a conceptual approach in which he redefines our experience of light and space. In contrast to Zimmermann's compositions, however, Magán strives for the expanse of space and fills it with his colored-spectral sculptures. Not only do they repeatedly create new perspectives through their all-round visibility, but also manage to create a fascinating light spectacle through their translucency, as in P8 / 60 v.01, 2018.

The painterly calculation factor is particularly pronounced with the Berlin artist Hans-Jörg Mayer (* 1955). The interest in a motif, its repetition, decomposition and exhaustion, is typical of Mayer and describes his painting better than a concept of style. As with Ginger, 2018, the encounter between expressive pictorial protagonists and floral experiment can also become the engine that drives the artist's typically out-of-the-way compositions. Mayer does not have a consistent style, but there is still an attitude towards painting that is formative for his work. Direct representations are ultimately diverted to a question, assertion or pose.

From March 8th, 2021 to April 17th, 2021 the exhibition "2021 reloaded" will be presented at the Samuelis Baumgarte Galerie.

Opening Hours

Monday - Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.