Press release -
MUNCH OPENS THE BIGGEST EXHIBITION OF GEORG BASELITZ WORKS EVER SHOWN IN NORWAY
On 15 February, MUNCH launches an exhibition by one of the most significant artists of our time: Georg Baselitz. Feet First is Norway’s biggest ever exhibition by the German artist. The entire 3rd floor of the museum is given over to his monumental paintings and drawings.
‘We are very proud to be able to invite our visitors to experience Georg Baselitz’s painterly, innovative and engaging artistry,´ comments MUNCH director Tone Hansen.
‘With the Feet First exhibition, the artist’s long-running relationship with Edvard Munch is explored for the first time – as well as giving us an insight into the development of an art practice that stretches across many decades.’
Georg Baselitz was born in 1938 in Hitler’s Germany, which was on the road to a world war that would leave Europe in ruins. The experience of being born in a ‘destroyed order’ has been a central theme in his art from his earliest work in the early 1960s right up to today.
Visitors can see more than 80 paintings and drawings from the early 60s to the present. You can expect a highly unusual experience, as his art can be both striking and physically direct, aggressive and at times deliberately clumsy. As he says: ‘I proceed from a state of disharmony, from ugly things… from feet that are too big.’
Georg Baselitz is best known for his upside-down images, which he began painting back in 1969. By painting a motif upside down, he opened up an alternative direction in modern art, between total abstraction and figurative depiction.
Since his debut, Baselitz has carried on an extended dialogue with both contemporary and historical art and artists. One of the most important of these is no less than Edvard Munch, especially his late self-portraits and The Scream. His relationship with Munch can be traced back to his very earliest paintings, from around 1960, and the nude motifs he was painting in the 1970s. It became even more pronounced in the early 1980s, when he created several paintings with clear reference to Munch, executed with a playful self-confidence which is typical of Georg Baselitz.
Georg Baselitz on his fascination with Edvard Munch. An interview produced by Louisiana Channel: https://www.munchmuseet.no/utstillinger/georg-baselitz/
About Georg Baselitz:
Georg Baselitz was born in 1938 in Hitler’s Germany, which was on the road to a world war that would leave Europe in ruins. The exoperience of being born in a ‘destroyed order’ has been a central theme in his art from his earliest work in the early 1960s right up to today.
With the increased interest in German contemporary art in the 1980s, Baselitz became one of the biggest names in the international art world. He is known not just for the artistic power of his images, but also for his provocative statements on art, gender and politics.
Publication:
In connection with the exhibition, MUNCH will publish Georg Baselitz: Feet First. The book’s title indicates Baselitz’s ongoing fascination with feet as a motif – which epxresses the artist’s interest in humanity’s earthbound existence as well as things that are ugly and grotesque. In addition, the title suggests Baselitz’s fearless approach to his art, and the way he has literally turned the world on its head.
As well as more than 80 illustrations, the book presents an extensive curator essay by Jon-Ove Steihaug, which examines Baselitz’s relatiuons to Edvard Munch’s art; and an anecdotal text by artist Sverre Wyller on his encounter with Baselitz in the 1980s.
The book also include an incisive essay on Baselitz’s continuous dialogue with other artists’ work, written by art historian Christian Weikop; and a text by Baselitz himself on his sculpture Greetings from Oslo. In addition, the book reproduces a conversation between Steihaug and Baselitz, previously published in the book Living Lines (MUNCH, 2021), updated with extra questions and answers connected to the MUNCH exhibition.
MUNCH Public Programme:
During the exhibition period, a film on Baselitz and his art will be screened in the lobby Amfi. This is a drop-in screening:
https://www.munchmuseet.no/en/whats-on/filmvisning-georg-baselitz--1203/
Curator talk on Baselitz, 15 February, 14.00
https://www.munchmuseet.no/en/whats-on/om-baselitz-1502/
Conversation "We need to Talk About Germany"
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MUNCH is home to the world's largest collection of works by Norwegian artist Edvard Munch. 22 October 2021, MUNCH will open in a brand new building on Oslo’s waterfront. The bespoke structure, designed by estudio Herreros, will house more than 26,000 works that Edvard Munch bequeathed to the City of Oslo. The museum also manages collections donated by Rolf Stenersen, Amaldus Nielsen and Ludvig Ravensberg.
The new museum will trace the artist’s profound influence both on modern art and on artists through to the present day. Alongside displays of iconic artworks from the renowned permanent collection, temporary exhibitions will show Edvard Munch’s lasting influence in his own contemporary society, as well as on today’s generation of artists.
Visitors will experience the highlights of Edvard Munch’s oeuvre, in parallel with a wide-ranging programme of cultural events and experiences for visitors of all ages. From its location in Bjørvika, with unparalleled views of the Oslo Fjord, the museum will offer an extensive program of art and cultural experiences across thirteen floors.
