Georg Baselitz, monumental prints. Rolf Iseli, monumental prints

Date 1983

Publisher The Museum of

Exhibition URL www.moma.org/calendar/exhibitions/1830

The 's exhibition history— from our founding in 1929 to the present—is available online. It includes exhibition catalogues, primary documents, installation views, and an index of participating artists.

MoMA © 2017 The Museum of Modern Art ROLFISELI

MONUMENTALPRINTS Thedrypoints executed by RolfIseli since 1975 are big,confron an "original" and that this perceiveddistance from the printed tational,and iconic. Measuring for the mostpart 60 x 30inches, sheetallows him a degreeof objectivityconducive to unself- theseprints are introspectiveand yet reflectiveof the artist's consciousexperimentation. Technically, direct contact is be personalexperiences in the countrysideof St. Romain,France. tweenartist and copper, not artist and paper, so whatwe actually Printedin small numbersof progressivestates rather than seeis a secondhandregistration of an earlieraction. There is standardeditions, these monumentalworks documentIseli's not only a time lag, but also an intermediaryagent—factors searchfor the artisticmanner most expressive of his subject. that exert their own force independentof the artist's touch. Iseli was born in Bern,Switzerland, in 1934.Initially a suc Paradoxically,the urgencywith whichIseli incised the copper is cessfultachiste painter in the 1950s,in 1966he renounced paint an actionthat the papermerely records, not receives.As Iseli ing on canvasfor drawing on paper,which could be "torn, himselfso poeticallyput it: "c'estla cuivrequi chante,"it is the pasted,shredded, thrown out and replaced."In 1961,attracted copperthat sings. to what he experiencedas the freedomand openness of French Poetryaside, the strugglebetween artist andmatrix is some culture,he had purchasedland in St. Romainand hadbegun to what less romantic.In a tiny cavelikespace at the Centrede divide his time betweenSwitzerland and France,tapping his GravureContemporain in Geneva,Iseli and his printer,Daniel experienceswith natureto forgea newdirection for his art. He Divorne,devote unimaginable stretches of time to producing beganto alter vaguelyfigurative forms in a seriesof meta theseworks. There copperplates are walked on, hammered, and morphosedself-portraits called Mushroom Man, Feather Man, consideredfrom every angle as they lie strewnabout the ground. andRush Man. These "Men," creatures of the very soil hetilled Gougesmade by a waywardnail inadvertentlydragged across in the vineyard,were inspired by the artist'sshadow as hesaw theplate by Iseli'sslipper are later admired for theunique quality it caston a sheetof paperone day while working outdoors. of line created.In the recepetiveatmosphere of this atelier, Trainedas a lithographerduring his student days, Iseli always milesfrom the sceneof their conception,the worked surfaces of maintainedsome involvement with .When sheetsof metalare finally broughtto life. large abstractcanvases, he producedlithographs mimicking A crucial and delicatestage in this lengthyprocess is the his oils in their flat andbroad areas of purecolor. He continued actualinking of theplate, a task left to Divorne,who approaches printinglithographs with somedegree of regularity;then in 1966 the job muchlike a musicianinterpreting a composer'sscore. hetried his handat engraving,and in 1973he attempted etching. After generalinstructions from Iseli,Divorne takes a "reading" Thefirst etchedseries was on a traditional small scale.The of the plate, relying on both his visual and tactile sensesto seriesdepicted variations of theself-portrait image he had begun familiarizehimself with the eccentricitiesof the metal'ssur to formulatein his "earth pictures"—works on paperin which face—specificfurrows, holes, or abrasionsmay speakto him bits of soil, grass,and rock wererolled onto a gluedsheet of morethan others. Inking a plateof suchlarge dimensions takes paperwith a winebottle. In theseearly intaglio prints, vigorously severalhours. During this time Divorneworks alone,uninter scratchedlines obliterate the recognizableform andfeatures of rupted,and with an admirablecombination of intensityand the artist's own headand torso. This energetic use of an intrin sensitivity.As he wipesaway ink with the palm of his hand, sically linear mediumwas a significantharbinger of thingsto subtledifferences in pressureand directionof the strokeswill come. directlyinform the composition's structure and space. By 1975,as Iseli'svineyard matured and the rigorouslife in Onemight ask why an artist devotesso muchtime and energy St. Romain—in a rustic housewithout electricity or running to printmakingwhen drawing would seem to bean appropriate water—was becomingmore deeply imprinted on his sensibility, andfar easiermedium in whichto furtherdevelop his style.The Iseli'sart grew in size and scope.No longerdid he incisecon relativelyshort life of the delicatedrypoint burr preventsIseli ventionalcopperplates of preciousand tentative dimensions. In from releasingthese drypoints in largeeditions of identicalim fact, he abandonedetching altogether for the more confron pressions.Instead, he prints a few examplesof each state, tational drypoint mediumin which the artist directly attacks workingand reworking the copper in stages,thereby document metal with tool in hand. This significant changeof artistic ingthe evolution of individualcompositions. It is this reportorial mediumenabled Iseli to moreclosely parallel his life in his art. aspectof the print medium,combined with the immediacyof Handsaccustomed to workingthe earthwould now work with workingon a coppersurface without acid (as in etching),that copperin a waythey had never done before. motivatesIseli. Oncea compositionis resolved,however, the Iselihas said that for him a print is somewhatremoved from processhas ended, and he goeson to discoverthe possibilities of another plate. The bold red ink stamp, a souvenir from a memorabletrip to China,is then applied as if to say "finished." It is difficult to view Iseli's work without consideringits direct relationship to nature, but further consideration reveals more complex sources. Iseli began painting in Switzerland at a time when American Abstract Expressionismreigned. The European version of the movement,, was an attempt to follow the American lead; but for Europeanabstract painters the task was difficult, and artists such as Iseli found themselvespainting in the shadow of the New World. It was in this atmospherethat Iseli turned to figurative sources in the early 1970s.After his American counterparts had passed into the second phase of Abstract Expressionismand Pop Art, Iseli continuedto develop his own highly original and personalform of figurative expres sion. As he continued to evolve this vocabulary throughout the 1970s—the pluralist decadeof Minimalism, Conceptualism,and ProcessArt—he maintained a self-imposed distance from the mainstream. It is only in the 1980sthat a "neo-expressionist" movement has taken form, presenting a suitable backdrop in which to presentIseli's art. In reflecting upon Rolf Iseli's demandingapproach to the dry- point medium, several obvious descriptions immediately come to mind: the works are black and white; they are massive;they are straightforwardly executed.It is printmaking stripped down to the bare bones and without the use of seductive colors, mechanicalaids, or facile illusions. It is printmaking on a monu mental scale, not only becauseof the work's sheersize but also becauseof the tremendousambition with which it is conceived. Utilizing limited means,Rolf Iseli aggressivelyextracts an extra ordinarily vast rangeof expressionfrom the medium. —AudreyIsselbacher Assistant Curator Prints and Illustrated Books

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The Museumof ModernArt is most grateful to the following for lending works to this exhibition: seven anonymouscollectors; Kunsthaus,Zurich; Kunstmuseum,; and M. KnoedlerZurich AG. Profound thanks are extended to Rolf Iseli, Veith Turske, and the staff of M. Knoedler Zurich AG, particularly Dagmar Bolliger, whose participation was of incomparablevalue to the preparationof this exhibition and brochure.Sincere appreciation is also extendedto Daniel Divorne, Centrede GravureContem- porain, Geneva;and RainerMichael Mason, Musee d'Art et d'His- toire, Geneva,who greatly facilitated researchon the artist. The exhibition has been funded in part by a contribution from Pro Helvetia,Arts Councilof Switzerland. 1. MushroomMan (Homme champignon) 14. UnderRocks (Sous roches) 3. RushMan (Homme dejonc) ISELICHECKLIST Dimensionsgiven are in inchesand centimeters,height precedingwidth, andunless otherwise noted are platesize. 8" 1. MushroomMan (Homme champignon). 1975. Drypoint, 581 'Aex 31V (149x <* 79cm). Lent by the Kunsthaus,Zurich. n/i6 n/i68" 2. MushroomMan (Homme champignon). 1975. Drypoint, 58 x 31V (149x 79cm). Private collection, Munster, West . 8" 5/8 3. RushMan (Homme de jonc). 1976.Drypoint, 60 x 31V (154x 79cm). Lent by the Kunstmuseum,Basel. 2 2/,B" 4. NailHead (Vernagleti Bire). 1977. Drypoint, 42'/ x 31S (108x 79.5cm). Privatecollection, . 4 42" 5. FeatherMan (Faderman). 1978. Drypoint and lithograph, sheet: 47'/ x 31V (120x 80cm). Private collection, Bangerten, Switzerland. 6. Drypointand Lithograph (Kaltnadel und Lithoeindruck).1979. Drypoint and 4 45/,»" lithograph,58'/ x 30 (148x 77 cm). Privatecollection, Frauchwil, Swit zerland. 4 7. GenevaForms (Figuren Genf). first state.1979. Drypoint and graphite,58 V n/)6" x 32 (148x 83cm). Privatecollection, Bottmingen, Switzerland. 4 4/t»" 8. GenevaForms (Figuren Genf), 1979.Drypoint, 58'/ x 32n (148x 83 cm). Privatecollection, Ochlenberg, Switzerland. ,3/1B 5/8" 9. 3 BeakMen (3 Schnabelmanner).1981. Drypoint, 24 x 36 (63x 93 cm).Lent by M. KnoedlerZurich AG. n/,eB" 10.Pe'rigord, seventeenth state. 1981.Drypoint, 58 x 33V, (149x 84 cm). Lentby M. KnoedlerZurich AG. 4 416" 11.Nail Head (Nagelkopf), fourth state.1981. Drypoint, 58'/ x 32"/ (148x 83 cm).Private collection, Zurich. 4 4 12.Nailed (Vernaglet), seventh state. 1981.Drypoint and lithograph,58'/ x 33Vie"(148 x 84cm). Lent by M. KnoedlerZurich AG. 13.Under Rocks (Sous roches), fourth state. 1982.Drypoint and lithograph, 7/i8 7/i82" 58 x 32V (148.5x 82.5cm). Lent by M. KnoedlerZurich AG. 7/)8 2" 14.Under Rocks (Sous roches), thirteenth state. 1982. Drypoint, 58 x 32V (148.5x 82.5cm). Lent by M. KnoedlerZurich AG. 15.Eavesdropper St. RomainGeneva (Horcher St. RomainGenf), third state. 2 25/)8" 1982.Drypoint, 55'/ x 32 (141x 82cm). Lent by M. KnoedlerZurich AG. 16. EavesdropperSt. RomainGeneva (Horcher St. RomainGenf), sixth state. 2 2/)8" 1982.Drypoint, 55'/ x 325 (141x 82cm). Lent by M. KnoedlerZurich AG. 17. EavesdropperSt. RomainBern (Horcher St. RomainBern), second state. 4 47/)8" 1983.Drypoint, 34'/ x 22 (87x 57cm). Lent by M. KnoedlerZurich AG.

GENERALACKNOWLEDGMENTS For her invaluableadvice and encouragementI am most grateful to Riva Castleman,Director of the Departmentof Printsand Illustrated Books. Other membersof the Museum'sstaff who haveassisted in the preparationof the exhibition and brochureand deservespecial thanks are: Jill Korostoff, GraphicDesigner; Richard Palmer, Coordinator of Exhibitions;Susan Weiley, AssociateEditor; and BarbaraWoytowicz, Registration Assistant.

16. EavesdropperSt.Romain Geneva (Horcher St.Romain Genf) Cover:6. Drypointand Lithograph (Kaltnadel und Lithoeindruck) GEORCBASEUTZ

MONUMENTALHINTS e e % Muss. ; .7 ' '.r?.Art Library c-7 Georg Baselitz's upside-down imagery, a quickly identifiable show through. Perhapsthe artist's shuffling and reshuffling of leitmotif, challenges not only the viewer's imagination but the the individual parts that make up the structural whole was entiretradition of Westernillusionism. By boldly turning a figure Baselitz's methodof respondingto the illogical happeningsof a on its ear, so to speak, Baselitz plays havoc with time-honored turbulent period.To turn the figure completelyupside-down was expectations of what a picture should be, while leaving tan the culmination of this artistic catharsis. talizing visible traces of a recognizablerepresentation. A rede Baselitz actually draws upside-down.He does not executean fined relationship between and abstraction results. In image rightside-up and merely invert the canvas or paper. For his monumentallinoleum cuts, begunin 1977,Baselitz fine-tunes him, the material evolution of the image is experiencedas an thesedelicate balancesas he eliminatesestablished boundaries abstract restructuring of the readableobject or scene.Baselitz's betweenpainting and printing. artistic goal is to create a new form of abstraction, Stil Malerei GeorgBaselitz was born GeorgKern in 1938in the village of (Style Painting),which is intrinsically dependentupon a realistic Deutschbaselitz,, a region destined to becomepart of style. It is the particular adaptability of linoleum cut to these East Germanyafter 1945.In 1956he emigrated to complex artistic concerns that led him to experimentwith that and formally studied with the tachiste painter . mediumin 1976. Baselitz,however, insisted on pursuingfigurative imagery, even Baselitz created prints as early as 1964,etching small plates duringthis impressionabledecade when abstract art was synon close in style and content to his and drawings of the ymous with freedom and the Westernworld (his nonconformist same period. He continuedto utilize printmaking as a primarily approachhad previouslyearned him expulsionfrom EastBerlin's reproductive medium until the late 1960s,when he began to Academyof Fine and Applied Arts for "social and political im issue portfolios consisting of a set of variations on a single maturity"). Baselitz, nevertheless,continued to develop an ex theme.It was during this time that the artist first understoodthe pressionist and staunchly figurative mode. In 1961-62,when he unique potential of printmaking as a means of achieving the was twenty-three years old, he issued his first Pandemonium further evolution of his style. The relentlessrevision of represen manifestos,asserting an unshakableindependence from abstract tations of mundanesubjects such as Cowsand Trees(he moved painting. Significantly, the first tract was published only a few to an isolated area in the countryside in 1966)subtly but effec monthsafter the building of the Berlin Wall. tively minimizedthe work's narrative content. The first two manifestos focused, as did the paintings, on When Baselitz first approachedthe linoleum cut medium in themes of blood, disease, and decay—and resulted in the con 1976,it was not without prior experienceof other relief printing fiscation of two paintings on public view and suspicion of the methods. In 1966he had executeda group of woodcuts, again artist's "fascist" tendencies.It was in this hostile atmosphere reiterating themeshe had explored in his paintings.These clair- that Baselitz issued his third manifestoin 1966,abruptly herald obscure depictions of large brooding New Types offer a first ing the appearanceof a more positive heroic male image, Der glimpse of Baselitz's natural predilectionfor relief printing. Ten Neue Typ (The New Type), based on the stylizations of six years later he would use a variety of block printing methods: teenth-century . It remains unclear whether these woodcut, wood engraving, and line-cut, to create his first Eagle "heroes" allude to Communism'sparty-line optimism or reflect portfolio. His free embellishmentof the printed sheets with fin- the artist's own acutely cynical view of the political turmoil of gerpainted additions illustrates an unrestrained approach to his age. In a direct translation of the fracture and displacement graphic technique. that ensuedin Germanyduring the mid-1960s,Baselitz beganto Linoleum,however, is not wood. It is softer, more pliant, and fragment the looming superhumanfigures he had developedin offers far less resistanceto the gougingtool. The line it produces his paintings. At first, portions of the figure were merely deline is more fluidly and rapidly executed. While the mechanicsof atedin a mannerthat underscoredthe individuality of the various woodcut are closer to "chiseling," those of linoleum cut are units that made up the pictorial whole. This very basic frag more aptly describedas "shaving." For an artist motivated by a mentationbecame increasingly complex as the piecesthen began desireto subtract figurative associationsfrom an initially realis to move,losing their innate referenceto the larger scene.Heads, tic depiction, the reductive method of linoleum cut offered the torsos, arms, and legs began to take on abstract associations most alluring possibilities. With it, he could alternately peel and could be understoodas pureforms againsta coloredground. away layers of mimetic illusionism or infiltrate an image with In the last phase of this subtle move away from conventional countlessagitated lines. figuration, the displaced anatomical sections becamepartially Baselitz always painted on a grand scale, so it is no surprise transparent, allowing portions of the sky and background to that once wholeheartedly committed to exploring the stylistic potential of a new mediumhe would maintain the format he had always worked in. Linoleum cuts measuring 90 x 60 inches, however, were unheard of, and this technical statistic unques tionably expandedthe parametersof that medium.Printmaking was no longer confined to the imitative repetition of previously resolved compositions. Now the effort to further evolve Stil Malerei would also occur in his printed art. The progressive evolution of this style was now documentedby the recording of each print's successivestates. Ratherthan issuing the linoleum cuts in large editions of the final image, the artist exploited printmaking's documentary characteristic to preservea visual recordof eachcomposition's development. Comparison between early and late states of the same depiction provides tangible evidenceof the intentions and concernsin Stil Malerei. Baselitz uses oil paint instead of ink to print these works, producing thick, rich textures that materially transplant them into the sanc tified realm of "painting." Frequentlycompounding this painterly effect by hand-applying even more oil to the printed paper, he disregardsthe conventional boundariesthat exist betweendis parate media. Baselitz'scherished collection of sixteenth-centuryMannerist prints has acknowledgedly influenced the direction of his ex pression, but the disquieting political upheaval of his own cen tury must also be examined. After initially fragmenting com positions during a time when his homeland was violently rup tured, the fantastic pictorial inversionthat followed may parallel a frightening realization that life itself has beenbrutally upset. Respondingto the senselessnessof his time, the artist has negatedvisual sense.In spite of the fact that Baselitz maintains that the image is . . completely inessential and of secondary importance,"there is no denyingthe psychologicalhuman pres ence of his art, a presencethat ultimately disturbs as it looms above,larger than life. —AudreyIsselbacher Assistant Curator Prints and Illustrated Books

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The Museumof ModernArt is most grateful to the following for lending works to this exhibition: Walter Bareiss; A. and G. Gercken; Mr. and Mrs. John A. Lawrence; Raymond Learsy; Staatliche Graphische Sammlung Munchen, ; Galerie Neuendorf,Hamburg; Sonnabend Gallery, New York; and Galerie MichaelWerner, Cologne. The indispensable cooperation of Fred Jahn was an essential element in preparing the exhibition and brochure,and we acknowledgethis with profound thanks. Pub lication of this brochure has beenassisted by the generosity of TheCosmopolitan Arts Foundation. 15. SmallEagle I 16. Womanin Window 4. Nudein EasyChair BASELITZCHECKLIST Dimensionsgiven are in inchesand centimeters,height precedingwidth, andunless otherwise noted are compositionsize. All linoleumcuts arecited in: SiegfriedGohr, Georg Baselitz 32 Linolschnitteaus denJahren 1976 bis 1979(Cologne: Josef-Haubrich-Kunsthalle Koln, 1979).

1. FemaleNude on Kitchen Stool, unpublished first state. February1-2, 1977. 3/8" Linoleumcut, 79'/* x 54 (202x 138cm). Lentby SonnabendGallery, New York. 2. FemaleNude on KitchenStool, unpublished seventh state. May 3, 1979. 2 23/8" Linoleumcut, 79'/ x 54 (202x 138cm). Lent by WalterBareiss, Munich. 3. Nudein EasyChair, unpublished fourth state. February6, 1977.Linoleum 8 8/i8" cut, printedin black andhand-painted, 79'/ x 513 (201x 130cm). Lentby A. andG. Gercken, Hamburg. 4. SeatedMan, Arms Over His Head, unpublished first state. February8, 1977. 8 89/)8" Linoleumcut, 79'/ x 51 (201x 131cm). Lent by A. and G. Gercken, Hamburg. 5. SeatedMan, Arms Over His Head, unpublished sixth state.February 8,1977. 8 89/t8" Linoleumcut, 79'/ x 51 (201x 131cm). Lent by A. and G. Gercken, Hamburg. 6. Backof Standing Female Nude, unpublished seventh state. February 15.1977. 8 8B" Linoleumcut, 79'/ x 59Vi (201x 150cm). Lentby SonnabendGallery, New York. 7. Elkein Profile,unpublished second state. February 25,1977. Linoleum cut, 8" 8 printed in black and hand-painted,79'/ x 59Vi (201x 150cm). Lent by GalerieNeuendorf, Hamburg. 8. Nudewith Three Arms, unpublished first state.April 6, 1977.Linoleum cut, ,3/iB"/i printed in red and hand-painted,987 6x 59 (250x 152cm). Lent by GalerieNeuendorf, Hamburg. /8 /8/i8" 9. SeatedMan. April 29,1979.Linoleum cut, 687 x 513 (175x 130cm). Lent by SonnabendGallery, New York. 8 8 10.Boxer. May 1, 1979.Linoleum cut, 79'/ x 52" (201x 132cm). Lent by RaymondLearsy, New York. 8 8 11.Sea Eagle, unpublished second state. May 7, 1979.Linoleum cut. 79'/ x 8" 57'/i (201x 145cm). Lent by the StaatlicheGraphische Sammlung Miinchen, on extendedloan from Galerie-VereinsMiinchen e. V., Munich. /ie" 3/8 12.Woman in Window.May 8,1979. Linoleum cut, 63 x 519 (161x 131cm). Lentby SonnabendGallery, New York. 8 8" 13.Gleaner II. May 10,1979.Linoleum cut, 79'/ x 57'/iB (201x 145cm). Lent by WalterBareiss, Munich. ,5/m 14.Small Eagle I, unpublishedsecond state. May 16,1979. Linoleum cut, 64 /iB" x 403 (165x 102cm). Lent by GalerieMichael Werner, Cologne. ,5/)8 15.Small Eagle I, unpublishedfourth state.May 17,1979.Linoleum cut, 64 /lB" x 403 (165x 102cm). Lent by GalerieMichael Werner, Cologne. 16.Woman in Window.September 20, 1981.Monotype, printed from cut lino 8" leumblock and hand-painted,sheet: 64 x 51V (162.5x 130.5cm). Lentby Mr.and Mrs. John A. Lawrence,New York.

7. Elkein Profile Cover:8. Nudewith Three Arms