German Art Now FROM THE PUBLISHER
German Art Now focuses on the extraordinary group of artists and photographers that emerged in Germany in the decades following the end of World War II, and whose wide-ranging themes and powerful aesthetic have established them as major figures on the world art stage. Featuring Joseph Beuys, Georg Baselitz, Jorg Immendorff, Anselm Kiefer, Markus Lupertz, A. R. Penck, Sigmar Polke, and Gerhard Richter, this survey examines the way in which, through their sculptures, paintings, and drawings, these artists have confronted issues of national identity, defeat and recovery, mythology and the burdens of history, and the responsibilities of art in society. They have developed new forms of expression in which to address these themes, and their impact on the fields of abstract and figurative art, Pop Art, photo-realism, and performance art has been significant. Similarities of background and generation bind them into a recognizable group, yet, as the authors show, their resistance to any similarities of subject matter, medium, style, or artistic persona continues to ensure their individuality.
These innovations, not surprisingly, were also felt in the sphere of photography, and an insightful essay considers a group of German photographers that has achieved worldwide respect. The pioneers Bernd and Hilla Becher taught and influenced a generation whose monumental presentations and technical prowess convey both the ambiguities of subject matter and the ambitions of the medium. Andreas Gursky, Candida Hofer, Thomas Ruff, and Thomas Struth are internationally recognized artists whose works are included in the permanent collections and major exhibitions of contemporary art in Europe and the United States. German Art Now examines pivotal works by these fourteen German artists who first came to recognition in the 1960s and 1970s, and who, with the exception of Joseph Beuys (who died in 1986), continue to create compelling art. This book illustrates the amazing scope and expressive power that this generation has defined.
FROM THE CRITICS
Library Journal
This beautiful exhibition catalog examines 14 German artists who rose to prominence in the 1960s and 1970s, among them Joseph Beuys, Anselm Kiefer, Sigmar Polke, and Thomas Struth. Sponsored by the St. Louis Museum of Art, this exhibition features an impressive collection of recent German art, with an emphasis on painting and photography. The interpretative essays belong to a strain of art history that emphasizes the interconnections between art and society. Like The Divided Heritage: Themes and Problems in German Modernism (1991), edited by Irit Rogoff, the exhibition's organizers assert that contemporary German art is marked by the legacy of World War II and the subsequent division of Germany into eastern and western halves. While the curators persuasively argue that German artists have been profoundly influenced by their country's "recent past and political present," their explanations are too pat; instead of opening up interpretative possibilities for readers, the authors want to nail down an interpretation and tell the reader what a particular image "means." This quibble aside, this catalog does a marvelous job of placing contemporary German art in a broader art history context. Suitable for both public and academic libraries.-Katherine C. Adams, Bowdoin Coll. Lib., Brunswick, ME Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.
Art & Photography
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