Point
6: Not deciphered yet
Willi Baumeister,
Retrospektive, Lenbachhaus
Signs. Formations. Figures.
Metaphyic landscapes.
A
floor filled with feeling
Formed to figurations.
A
photo of the painter
Standing in front of his paintings
As if they
weren't his.
Willi Baumeister.
I
didn't know much about his work, or about himself.
It
was rather that I walked into the museum, into the first floor, and there they
were - his paintings. Great huge paintings, bringing back memories of
art is
reality is
movement is
colour is
form is
art
(this is one link)
"Not deciphered yet" / "Noch nicht entziffert" ~
is the name of one of Baumeister's key paintings.
He painted it during the
time of the Third Reich. Baumeister was director of the Stuttgart Academy of Arts
before that time. He was removed from this position, and was not allowed to exhibit
his work any more. Neither was he allowed to paint.
Still
he worked on, in "Inner Exile" as he called it once. Refusing to leave,
he stayed, and painted figures and forms of this society he didn't belong to any
more, he couldn't relate to, that left him without the colours of life. Maybe
this also explains the photo of him, standing in front of his paintings as if
they weren't his. Cause they weren't allowed to be at the time he created them.
I had no idea of any of this when I
was seeing the exhibition.
Maybe we should meet every artist's work
two times: once before and once after we know about its history.
Point 5: Toothpaste
