Markus Lüpertz

Markus Lüpertz made his debut in the 1960s with monumental canvases in a unique figurative style. His work brought new freedom to the world of painting. The current retrospective features paintings, sculptures, and drawings by this Malerfürst, or “Painter Prince,” now seventy years old. The exhibition is divided into nine thematic sections, such as “visual invention,” “art history,” and “the serial method: tree trunks.”

The show opens with works from the artist’s expressive, vividly colorful Donald Duck series, painted in the 1960s, followed by his “dithyrambic” paintings, which have a more constrained palette and stronger forms. His canvases present unique visual discoveries, seemingly figurative but not representing any concrete object. This is where Lüpertz found his authentic self. The term dithyrambic (an homage to Nietzsche) alludes here to the Dionysian spirit, and fittingly so: Lüpertz celebrates the art of painting, while his potent forms and rhythms, his echoes of modern masters, and his themes such as the spike, the helmet, and the uniform place him firmly in the German artistic tradition. The centerpiece of the exhibition is Tree Trunks (Dithyrambic), 1966, a group of seven works on canvas in matte, water-based paint, with a single subject: a tree trunk divided lengthwise into two or four sections. The simultaneously abstract and figurative character of these paintings is nothing short of sublime. It is hard to believe that Lüpertz painted them all in the 1960s; they seem so fresh that they might have been made yesterday.

Not all of Lüpertz’s work is so compelling. Alongside inimitable achievements, there are also awkward or artificial paintings, such as The Judgment of Paris, 2010. The constant factor, though, is the painter’s dedication, which is palpable in every room. Driven by the spirit of Picasso, the artist has delved into a wide array of genres. While that has its risks, it also fosters intense concentration. For Lüpertz, it has led the way to works of manifest genius—dithyrambic genius, to be exact.

Translated from Dutch by David McKay.