Image, Body, Pathos

Born in 1923 in Barcelona, Antoni Tàpies is – along with Dalí, Miró and Chillida, but above all, Picasso – the greatest Spanish artist. Self-taught, he first concerned himself with copying classical masters, but only after a trip to Paris and his discovery of Informel, Art Brut and Jean Dubuffet did he markedly reduce his artistic means which has since become the byword for his work. He now layers the texture of his canvas with sand and marble dust which is then mixed with paint in order to create decidedly brittle, occasionally even colourless archetypes made up of everyday objects, magical elements and religious symbols.
The exhibition at the Museum für Gegenwartskunst Siegen has brought ­to­gether a series of high quality loan works alongside the works from the Lambrecht-Schadeberg Collection and also intends to catalyse a young gener­ation of writers to engage with the work of the 1972 winner of the City of Siegen’s Rubens Prize. They will ­embark upon an exciting adventure by formulating a new, contemporary ­approach to the work of the old master.

Exhibition:
Museum für Gegenwartskunst Siegen, 13/11/2011–19/2/2012
Reykjavik Art Museum, 18/3–13/5/2012