Neo Rauch a Globally Celebrated Painter from Leipzig
Neo Rauch, a globally recognized painter from Leipzig, is among the most discussed and esteemed active artists in the field of painting today. His works are purchased by prominent collectors and collected and exhibited by leading museums.
Born in Leipzig in 1960, Neo Rauch grew up in Aschersleben, located on the northeastern edge of the Harz mountains in what is now Saxony-Anhalt. Both of his parents studied at the Academy of Visual Arts in Leipzig. Tragically, they died in a head-on collision between two trains between Leipzig-Mockau and Leipzig Central Station, just four weeks after Neo Rauch's birth in 1960.
In his painting "Stellwerk 2," Rauch addresses this trauma – an attempt to artistically process the incomprehensible. The scene depicts a man with rough worker's gloves holding an adult man of child's size like a baby, with a woman observing. In the background, like a ghost, a man with a high forehead watches over the scene. Perhaps he is the signal box operator who at the time made the fateful decision and set the wrong points.
Neo Rauch was raised by his grandparents, who never repressed the tragedy and displayed photos of the deceased parents along with their artworks throughout the house. Art was a significant presence in his grandparents' home. Influential for the twelve-year-old was a volume of reproductions of Salvador Dalí's works.
© Courtesy of the artist Neo Rauch, Galerie EIGEN + ART Leipzig/Berlin, and David Zwirner
After completing his high school education, Neo Rauch began studying painting in 1981 under the legendary Professor Arno Rink at the Leipzig Academy of Visual Arts and became a master student of Professor Bernhard Heisig in 1986. Neo Rauch himself was appointed a professor at this academy in 2005 and served as an honorary professor from 2009 to 2014. During this time, he taught, among others, Sebastian Burger, Stefan Guggisberg, Marie Carolin Knoth, Mandy Kunze, David O´Kane, Titus Schade, Kristina Schuldt, Claus Stabe, Martin Ziegler, and Robert Seidel. Following various exhibitions in Germany, Neo Rauch achieved his international breakthrough in 1999 at the Armory Show in New York. His works have taken the art world by storm and are now in the collections of major international museums. Neo Rauch has been married for many years to the artist Rosa Loy, a sensitive critic of his paintings.
Neo Rauch in his studio, 2016. Photo: Uwe Walter, Berlin Courtesy the artist, Galerie EIGEN + ART Leipzig/Berlin and David Zwirner
Neo Rauch's paintings are influenced by surrealism and socialist realism, incorporating elements of pop art and, in earlier works, references to comics. His style can be attributed to magical realism and neo-romanticism. Through a moodily melancholic and often somber color palette, Rauch depicts figures in strange and paradoxical situations where the laws of space and time appear to be suspended.
Over recent years, Rauch's paintings have become increasingly complex and monumental. They contain dramatic, theatrical elements with a touch of enigma, often raising more questions than they answer.
Groups of figures in his works seem to ignore each other, as if each is wandering through their own dream. Rauch's painting evokes the sensation of waking up and attempting to grasp the fragments of a dream. "They are a persistent entourage," says the artist. These sleepwalking human beings, with eyes neither open nor closed, sometimes donning insect wings or odd caps, at other times clad in green bodysuits and pink cheerleader pom-poms. In a conversation, Neo Rauch reflects, "These figures also visit me at night... then they shake my bed. They won't let me sleep."
Rauch’s unique approach to visual storytelling, blending historical art movements with his personal, dream-like imagery, positions him as a pivotal figure in contemporary art. His ability to weave together disparate elements into a cohesive yet enigmatic whole invites viewers into a world where the subconscious and conscious meld. Rauch's work prompts a deep reflection on the human condition, memory, and the power of the imagination, making his contributions to the art world both invaluable and unforgettable.
Photo by Uwe Walter. Courtesy of the artist and David Zwirner.
Strange creatures and hybrid beings, simultaneously familiar and alien, often engage in activities that defy easy or obvious explanations. Wearing thick gloves to protect his hands from turpentine, Rauch seems to wrestle with the figures he creates. Unmistakably, the painter has undergone the compositional school of the old masters. As in the paintings of the High Renaissance, figures are layered in depth and height across the canvas. Yet, each acts independently, descending into autistic isolation with their eyes closed. Although the action is occasionally violent, a sense of detachment prevails, making it difficult to identify or empathize with individual characters.
Realistic rural landscapes and architectures rooted in Rauch's own region set the backdrop for his paintings. There's a mood over the depopulated landscapes reminiscent of the unwound enterprises from the former GDR. Both in his industrial and natural landscapes, spatial relationships are often irregular, and the proportions dynamic.
Neo Rauch is one of the most significant artists of our time. He is considered the most prominent representative of the New Leipzig School, an art movement that also includes Tilo Baumgärtel, Martin Kobe, and David Schnell.
Although he primarily paints on large-format canvases, he continually returns to the graphic sheet. The graphics are exclusively printed by Tobias Reinicke and Stephan Rosentreter at the Lithographic Workshop in Leipzig. For years, Rauch's graphic works have been presented to the public in annual exhibitions in Aschersleben.
We recommend a visit to the Neo Rauch Graphic Foundation in Aschersleben.
Grafikstiftung Neo Rauch
Wilhelmstraße 21
06449 Aschersleben
www.grafikstiftungneorauch.de
Photo by Uwe Walter. Courtesy the artist and David Zwirner
David Zwirner Gallery
525 W 19th St, New York
NY 10011, USA
www.davidzwirner.com
or
Galerie Eigen+Art
Auguststraße 26
10117 Berlin
www.eigen-art.com
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