Willi Baumeister and Norbert Kricke
We are delighted to invite you to our second exhibition at our Munich branch at Theresienstraße 46. The exhibition “Willi Baumeister and Norbert Kricke” brings together two protagonists of 20th-century art history who, each in their own way, sought a new artistic language to give new forms to the demand for artistic freedom.
In collaboration with the Willi Baumeister Foundation, works by Willi Baumeister (1889–1955) are presented: early lithographs from his constructivist-influenced early work, in which geometric compositions always originate from the human figure, as well as drawings and paintings from the 1950s. These works belong to Baumeister’s iconic late work and show him as a unique inventor of vivid visual worlds and a true pioneer of the avant-garde.
On display are spatial sculptures and drawings from the 1950s by Norbert Kricke (1922–1984) – a phase in which he had joined the Informel group. His goal was to reclaim artistic freedom in a space for action that was limited by as few coordinates as possible. This act of liberation, attuned to a new beginning, had far-reaching consequences for his own work as well as for the definition of the genres of sculpture and drawing. The selection of exhibits was made in collaboration with Sabine Kricke-Güse, the artist’s estate administrator.