Post War — A483: Modern, Post War & Contemporary
Imi Knoebel (born Klaus Wolf Knoebel) is a German artist. Knoebel is known for his minimalist, abstract painting and sculpture. The "Messerschnitt" or "knife cuts," are a recurring technique he employs, along with his regular use of the primary colors, red, yellow and blue. Knoebel lives and works in Düsseldorf.
Max Bill, a Swiss artist, architect, painter, typeface designer, industrial designer, and graphic designer, emerged as a key figure in 20th-century art and design. Born in Winterthur, Switzerland, in 1908, Bill's education at the Bauhaus under luminaries like Wassily Kandinsky, Paul Klee, and Oskar Schlemmer profoundly influenced his multidisciplinary approach. His work spans from graphic design, where he was instrumental in shaping Swiss design from the 1950s, to product design with iconic creations like the Ulmer Hocker, a versatile stool designed in 1954.
Bill's contributions to concrete art and his role in founding the Ulm School of Design alongside Inge Aicher-Scholl and Otl Aicher in 1953, mark him as a pioneer who blurred the lines between art, design, and architecture. His theoretical writings and teaching at the Ulm School further underscored his commitment to integrating art with science, shaping a generation of designers and artists.
Noteworthy among his architectural works are his own house and studio built in Zurich-Höngg in the early 1930s and a series of public sculptures that challenge perceptions and engage public spaces in innovative ways. His legacy also includes influential roles in politics, contributions to the field of education, and the establishment of foundations to preserve his work and ideals.
Bill's extensive oeuvre, which also includes timepieces designed for Junghans and a multitude of sculptures, demonstrates his belief in the unity of form and function and the possibility of art to embody the principles of the new physics of the 20th century. His works are not only held in high regard for their aesthetic and functional qualities but also for their ability to convey complex theoretical ideas in tangible forms.
For collectors and experts in art and antiques, Max Bill remains a figure of immense importance, whose works continue to inspire and influence contemporary design and art practices. Sign up for updates related to Max Bill to stay informed about new product sales and auction events showcasing his remarkable contributions to modern art and design.
François Morellet was a French contemporary abstract painter, sculptor, and light artist. His early work prefigured minimal art and conceptual art and he played a prominent role in the development of geometrical abstract art and post-conceptual art.
Louis Cane is a contemporary French painter, sculptor and furniture designer. Louis Cane attended the National School of Decorative Arts in Nice then the Superior School of Decorative arts in Paris in 1961. Cane was a part of the Supports/Surfaces Movement in France that lasted from 1969 to 1972 and co-founded and edited the Peinture, Cahiers Theoriques. In 1978, began sculpting again. They consisted of female figures in a traditional style. Cane focused on the concept of deconstruction of the canvas. By 1970, Cane transitioned into a series of cut-out paintings, the toiles découpées, which he worked with for several years. From 1972 to 1972, he produced a series called Sol/Mur as apart of the Supports/Surfaces movement. In 1978, Cane went from abstract painting to figuration. He reflected on the history of pictorial forms. He also started integrating sculpture into his practice. The statues were almost exclusively female occasionally appearing in form of burlesque or baroque expressionism.
Jean Leppien (born Kurt Leppien) was a German-French painter.
From 1929, Leppien studied at the Bauhaus Dessau with Josef Albers, Wassily Kandinsky and Paul Klee. He lived in France since 1933, from where he was deported in 1944. After the war he stayed in France as Jean Leppien, where he exhibited at the Salon des Réalités Nouvelles. Leppien is one of the most important representatives of the Geometric abstraction in France. Stylistically, he is close to painters such as Alberto Magnelli, Jean Deyrolle, Michel Seuphor, Emile Gilioli and Aurélie Nemours.
Jean Leppien (born Kurt Leppien) was a German-French painter.
From 1929, Leppien studied at the Bauhaus Dessau with Josef Albers, Wassily Kandinsky and Paul Klee. He lived in France since 1933, from where he was deported in 1944. After the war he stayed in France as Jean Leppien, where he exhibited at the Salon des Réalités Nouvelles. Leppien is one of the most important representatives of the Geometric abstraction in France. Stylistically, he is close to painters such as Alberto Magnelli, Jean Deyrolle, Michel Seuphor, Emile Gilioli and Aurélie Nemours.
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Samuel Lewis Francis, an American painter and printmaker, was known for his pivotal role in postwar American painting and his contributions to the Abstract Expressionism and Color Field painting movements. Born in San Mateo, California, Francis' early life was marked by a deep personal loss and a significant injury during his service in the Army Air Corps, which led him to pursue painting while recovering in a hospital. His work, characterized by splashes of bright contrasting colors against expansive white canvases, drew international acclaim, particularly in Europe and Japan, underscoring his influence on the global art scene.
Francis' art evolved through various phases, from monochromatic works to vibrant, large-scale pieces, and was deeply influenced by his time in Paris and Japan, reflecting elements of Tachisme and possibly Zen Buddhism. Notable for creating large murals and his "Edge" series, Francis also founded The Lapis Press, further contributing to the art community by producing visually compelling texts. Despite facing health challenges towards the end of his life, he remained prolific, leaving behind a legacy celebrated through the Sam Francis Foundation, which aims to perpetuate his creative legacy.
Francis' artworks are held in prestigious collections worldwide, including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Museum of Modern Art, New York, and the Centre Pompidou-Musee National d'Art Moderne, Paris, highlighting his enduring influence on contemporary art. His auction records and continued recognition in solo exhibitions posthumously underscore the lasting impact of his work on both collectors and the art community.
For those passionate about modern art and its history, staying informed about Samuel Lewis Francis' contributions and the ongoing exhibitions of his works can be enriching. Sign up for updates related to Francis to ensure you don't miss out on new sales and auction events showcasing his vibrant legacy.
Theodoros Stamos was a Greek-American painter. He is one of the youngest painters of the original group of abstract expressionist painters (the so-called "Irascibles"), which included Jackson Pollock, Willem de Kooning and Mark Rothko. His later years were negatively affected by his involvement with the Rothko case.
Jevel Demikovski, known professionally as Jules Olitski, was an American painter, printmaker, and sculptor.
Olitski had over 150 one-person exhibitions in his lifetime and is represented in museums worldwide. He has received honorary doctorates from the University of Hartford, Keene State College, and Southern New Hampshire University.
Ulrich Erben is a German painter. From 1980 to 2005, he was a Professor of Painting at the Kunstakademie Münster (University of Fine Arts Münster). He is known as a master of the color field style of abstract painting, closely related to abstract expressionism, in which he creates tension between a defined surface structure, his own method of applying paint to a canvas, and the relationship of various shades of white or color to each other in their placement as part of a composition on the flat plane of a canvas. In 1986 and 2008, he was awarded the Konrad-von-Soest Prize for Visual Arts by the Landschaftsverband Westfalen-Lippe (Landscape Society Westphalia-Lippe).
Domenico (Mimmo) Rotella was an Italian artist considered an important figure in post-war European art. Best known for his works of décollage and psychogeographics, made from torn advertising posters. He was associated to the Ultra-Lettrists an offshoot of Lettrism and later was a member of the Nouveau Réalisme, founded in 1960 by the art critic Pierre Restany.
Gotthard Graubner was a German abstract painter associated with the post-war Zero and Informel movements. Graubner's work is known for its focus on color and its relationship to space and perception.
Graubner studied at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf under the painter Georg Meistermann. In the 1950s, he became associated with the Zero group, a movement of artists who sought to create a new art form that was free of traditional artistic conventions and focused on the use of unconventional materials.
In the 1960s, Graubner began creating his signature "color-space bodies," large canvases that were mounted away from the wall and filled with thick layers of pigment. These works were designed to be experienced as three-dimensional objects that were both paintings and sculptures, and they often created a sense of depth and spatial ambiguity.
Graubner's work was exhibited widely in Europe and the United States, and he was the recipient of numerous awards and honors throughout his career. He also taught at several art schools, including the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf and the Städelschule in Frankfurt.
Graubner's innovative approach to painting and his exploration of the relationship between color, space, and perception continue to be an important influence on contemporary art.
Gotthard Graubner was a German abstract painter associated with the post-war Zero and Informel movements. Graubner's work is known for its focus on color and its relationship to space and perception.
Graubner studied at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf under the painter Georg Meistermann. In the 1950s, he became associated with the Zero group, a movement of artists who sought to create a new art form that was free of traditional artistic conventions and focused on the use of unconventional materials.
In the 1960s, Graubner began creating his signature "color-space bodies," large canvases that were mounted away from the wall and filled with thick layers of pigment. These works were designed to be experienced as three-dimensional objects that were both paintings and sculptures, and they often created a sense of depth and spatial ambiguity.
Graubner's work was exhibited widely in Europe and the United States, and he was the recipient of numerous awards and honors throughout his career. He also taught at several art schools, including the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf and the Städelschule in Frankfurt.
Graubner's innovative approach to painting and his exploration of the relationship between color, space, and perception continue to be an important influence on contemporary art.
Lucio Fontana was an Argentine-Italian artist known for his pioneering work in the field of Spatialism, an artistic movement that explored the relationship between space and art.
Fontana studied sculpture at the Academy of Fine Arts in Milan, Italy. In the 1940s, he began experimenting with a technique he called "Spatial Concept," in which he punctured or cut holes into the canvas to create a sense of depth and dimensionality.
Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, Fontana continued to explore the possibilities of Spatialism, creating works in a variety of media, including sculpture, ceramics, and painting. One of his most famous series of works is the "Tagli" (Cuts), which consist of monochromatic canvases with one or more slashes or punctures.
Fontana's work had a significant influence on the development of the Arte Povera movement in Italy, as well as on the development of Minimalism and Conceptual Art. He exhibited his work widely in Europe and the United States, and his legacy continues to be celebrated by artists and critics today.
Fontana's innovative approach to art and his exploration of the relationship between space and form continue to be a source of inspiration for artists working in a wide range of media.
