Neo Rauch is a figurative painter who specialises in large stretchers of complex narratives, where groups of figures hover within fragmented picture planes and slivers of flat unmodulated colour.
Exuding dissatisfaction with conventional storytelling, the works combine communist Socialist Realism with Pop art and Surrealism. He is regarded as the leading painter in the New Leipzig School.
After his parents, who were also artists, were killed in a train crash, Rauch was raised in Aschersleben by his grandparents. He now lives near the commercial city of Leipzig, in Markkleeberg, working there in a studio with his wife, artist Rosa Loy.
Rauch studied painting at the same academy as his parents, the Leipzig Academy of Visual Arts, under the supervision of the painter Arno Rink and Bernhard Heisig, the state painter for the Communist regime. Many of his classmates made up the New Leipzig School after Germany was unified, and Rauch worked as a teaching professor at the Leipzig Academy until 2014.
Rauch's hybrid paintings are rich with art historical allusions to different time periods. Using the traditional techniques of classic history painting, they evade logical explanation. The protagonists' bodies, sometimes adorned with symbolic animal heads, horns, tails, or wings, are accompanied by various indeterminate objects and often aligned at strange angles in industrial or landscape settings. The result is disorientating, as if the figures are frozen in mid-action. Examples include Hunt (2002) and Übergang (2003). Some stylistically hint at Jörg Immendorff's use of figures in cafes.
With Rauch, the flickering dreamy light is never atmospheric or murky, but always crystalline sharp. Such clarity makes Rauch's unanticipated juxtapositions all the more unnerving. Whether within their compositional vectors or otherwise, the brightly hued images seem to be allegorical, yet all such tropes remain inconsistent.
Rauch's images attempt to reflect the extreme violence, chaos, and madness of the world we live in. In an interview he has said: 'In my own way I inhale the world around me. It flows into my brush, then reappears, transformed.'
In 2019, a very ugly public disagreement with a critic resulted in a furore that made Rauch decide—despite the increased media attention—to never engage with any reviewer in such fashion again.
Wolfgang Ullrich, an art writer, argued that there was a right-wing bias in the German art scene where reactionary tendencies dominated in opposition to progressive attempts to promote post-colonial and feminist critiques. He claimed Rauch was a leading example of such anti-'politically correct' propagandising.
To this, Rauch, who sees himself as centrist, reacted by painting the critic squatting over a potty, scooping up the contents, and painting a canvas with his own excrement, the subject being a figure giving a Nazi salute. The subsequent commotion resulted with Ullrich writing a book and the work (Der Anbräuner) being auctioned off to raise a large amount of money for charity.
This much lauded, popular, quite traditional painter has had many surveys, and is seen as a symbol of a modern, newer Germany, much more recent and contemporary than say that inhabited by more modernist 'experimental' post war figures like A. R. Penck, Sigmar Polke, or Gerhard Richter.
The artist has participated in the following select solo exhibitions:
The artist has also participated in the following group exhibitions, including
Neo Rauch's work is held in numerous major collections across the world, including the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York; Goetz Collection, Munich; The Broad, Los Angeles; and Museum Ludwig, Cologne.
Neo Rauch's artworks are held in numerous prominent institutions worldwide. In Germany, his pieces are part of the collections at the Museum der bildenden Künste Leipzig and the Museum Ludwig in Cologne. Internationally, his works can be found at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Rubell Museum in Miami, and the Guggenheim Museum in New York. Additionally, the Grafikstiftung Neo Rauch in Aschersleben, Germany, is dedicated to his graphic works and regularly hosts exhibitions.
Rauch is acclaimed for several significant paintings that blend surrealism with socialist realism. Notable works include Tal (1999), which depicts two men in boxing shorts fighting with long sticks in a surreal landscape, and Reactionary Situation (2002), featuring a rural scene with enigmatic figures and a floating windmill. These paintings exemplify his unique style of combining fantastical elements with realistic settings.
Yes, Rauch has been the recipient of several prestigious awards throughout his career. He was awarded the Renta-Preis in 1992, the Kunstpreis der Leipziger Volkszeitung in 1997, and the Vincent van Gogh Biennial Award for Contemporary Art in Europe in 2002. In 2005, he received the Kunstpreis Finkenwerder, and in 2018, he was honoured with the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany, 1st Class.
Beyond painting, Rauch has a deep interest in printmaking and has produced numerous lithographs and etchings. He often collaborates with his wife, artist Rosa Loy, on various projects and exhibitions. Their joint works explore themes of mythology, dreams, and the subconscious, further enriching Rauch's artistic repertoire.
Established in 2012, the Grafikstiftung Neo Rauch is a foundation based in Aschersleben, Germany, dedicated to preserving and exhibiting Rauch's graphic works. The foundation houses a comprehensive collection of his prints and drawings and serves as a research centre for scholars and enthusiasts interested in his oeuvre.
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