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Arnulf Rainer

ARNULF RAINER

Ex nihilo Galerie Lelong 17 March–7 May 2022 13 Rue de Téhéran, Paris
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Press Release

In Austria in the 1950s, Arnulf Rainer developed a particularly obsessive way of drawing and painting. In 1951, with the artist Maria Lassnig, he visited André Breton in Paris. His work, initially influenced by surrealism, evolved towards a sort of informal, radical art. In the early 1960s, he worked on his own image, furiously modifying photo booth shots, photographic self-portraits where he adopted deliberately grotesque poses. He thus become one of the main protagonists of Viennese Actionism. Then overpainting (Übermalung) become his trademark: his works are made from successive layers of paint that cover an initial image, sometimes to such an extent that it is no longer visible. This is not just a simple game, but a sort of intense ritual mobilising all the painter’s energy.

The Ex nihilo exhibition gathers the most recent paintings from the artist, today aged 92. A series of prints is also displayed at the bookstore. The catalogue is introduced by Corinna Thierolf, former director of the Pinakothekder Moderne in Munich.

Arnulf Rainer was born in 1929 in Baden (Austria) where a museum dedicated to his work opened in 2009. He lives and works in Austria and Tenerife.

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About the Artist

Arnulf Rainer was born in 1929 in Baden, Austria. He lives and works in Austria.

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About the Gallery
Galerie Lelong is located in Paris and New York. It was founded by Jacques Dupin, Daniel Lelong and Jean Frémon.

The Paris gallery has been exhibiting recent works from artists of international standing since 1981. The 1980s were notable for artists who went on to become household names, including Joan Miró, Antoni Tàpies, Francis Bacon, Louise Bourgeois, Eduardo Chillida, Paul Rebeyrolle, Pierre Alechinsky, but also for the next generation of artists: Konrad Klapheck, Jan Dibbets, Donald Judd, Robert Ryman, Richard Serra, Jannis Kounellis, Arnulf Rainer, Nicola De Maria and Jan Voss.

In the 1990s, the gallery hosted artists who represented major movements in contemporary art: Sean Scully, Günther Förg, Andy Goldsworthy, Ernest Pignon-Ernest, Antonio Saura. The gallery also increased international recognition of the work of Ana Mendieta.

Since the turn of the century, Galerie Lelong has accentuated the geographical and expressive diversity of its artists: from sculpture and objects by Jaume Plensa, David Nash, Wolfgang Laib, Kiki Smith, Rebecca Horn, Barry Flanagan to installations by Barthélémy Toguo and Lin Tianmiao, without forgetting painting, namely David Hockney, Robert Motherwell, Kate Shepherd, Nalini Malani, Nancy Spero, Juan Uslé, Leon Kossoff.

Galerie Lelong has a large publishing department which produces and distributes engravings, lithographs, digital prints and multiple objects, and collates these works in catalogues raisonnés.

It produces monumental sculptures to order for public spaces and private clients.

The gallery is present at the leading international contemporary art fairs (Art Basel, Art Basel Miami Beach, Art Basel Hong Kong, Fiac Paris, Frieze London, Frieze New York, Arco Madrid, Art Brussels, Expo Chicago...).

The directors of the gallery are Jean Frémon, Daniel Lelong and Patrice Cotensin in Paris and Mary Sabbatino in New York.
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Address
13 rue de Téhéran
Paris
France
Opening Hours
Tues - Fri, 10.30am - 6pm
Sat, 2pm - 6.30pm
(1)
Paris 13 rue de Téhéran
Galerie Lelong contemporary art gallery in 13 Rue de Teheran Paris France
Galerie Lelong
13 rue de Téhéran, Paris, France
+33 145 631 319
http://www.galerie-lelong.com

Opening hours
Tues - Fri, 10.30am - 6pm
Sat, 2pm - 6.30pm
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