Curatorial work: Leben in Bildern. Ein Porträt des Sehens

Leben in Bildern. Ein Porträt des Sehens für Rudolf Zwirner

The exhibition Leben in Bildern. Ein Porträt des Sehens für Rudolf Zwirner [A Life in Pictures: A Portrait of Seeing for Rudolf Zwirner] traces the various stages of the gallery owner’s life as reflected in art. Works from different periods of origin are juxtaposed to create exciting dialogues, enabling conclusions to be drawn about existential themes of humankind.

Since 1956, all aspects of Rudolf Zwirner’s life have been closely linked with art, the development of which he decisively shaped in the second half of the twentieth century up to the present day: professionally as a gallery owner, secretary general of documenta II, cofounder of the world’s first art fair, and curator, but also privately in intensive exchange with artists. Leben in Bildern. Ein Porträt des Sehens für Rudolf Zwirner, shown on the occasion of his ninetieth birthday, makes a plea that art as an essential part of the human condition. The more than fifty works in the exhibition, which come from museums, private collections, as well as the Deutsche Bank Collection, which owes important acquisitions to the Zwirner gallery, paint an artistic portrait of this impressive, multi-faceted man. At the same time, however, they stand for the constants, ruptures, and developments in art and the art trade since the postwar period, which Zwirner decisively influenced and shaped. Rudolf Zwirner was already associated with most of the artists represented in the show in the early stages of their careers and participated in their later successes.

Featuring works by
Georg Baselitz / Hans Bellmer / Joseph Beuys / Louise Bourgeois / Serge Charchoune / Natalie Czech / Gaspare Diziani / Albrecht Dürer / Max Ernst / Jean Fautrier / Dan Flavin / Lucio Fontana / Bruno Goller / George Grosz / David Hockney / Merlin James / Jasper Johns / Anger Jorn / Martha Jungwirth / On Kawara / Martin Kippenberger / Konrad Klapheck / Astrid Klein / Yves Klein / Gary Kuehn / Mark Lammert / Maria Lassnig / Sol LeWitt / René Magritte / Agnes Martin / André Masson / Jakob Mattner / Olaf Metzel / Henri Michaux / Piet Mondrian / Michael Müller / Bruce Nauman / Michael Oppitz / Blinky Palermo / Panamarenko / Giuseppe Penone / Raymond Pettibon / Francis Picabia / Pablo Picasso / Angelika Platen / Sigmar Polke / Robert Rauschenberg / Gerhard Richter / Henri Rousseau / Fred Sandback / Matija Skurjeni / Daniel Spoerri / Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo / Jean Tinguely / Cy Twombly / Franz Erhard Walther / Andy Warhol / Franz West

Curated by
Philipp Bollmann and Michael Müller

The exhibition takes place in close collaboration with Studio Michael Müller and with the kind support of the Alien Athena Foundation for Art.

July 31, 2023 06.00 pm - 07.00 pm
August 10, 2023 06.00 pm - 07.00 pm
Curator’s Tour – A Life in Pictures: A Portrait of Seeing for Rudolf Zwirner

Philipp Bollmann and Michael Müller give a guided tour of the exhibition they curated A Life in Pictures: A Portrait of Seeing for Rudolf Zwirner. On the occasion of the 90th birthday of gallery owner Rudolf Zwirner, the exhibition creates an artistic portrait of his biography, tracing the various stages of a human life. The artworks on exhibit are placed in the context of the constants, ruptures, and developments in art since the postwar period and in the art business. On view are works by many artists with whom Zwirner was associated throughout their careers and in whose successes he participated.

August 2, 2023 06.00 pm - 07.00 pm
A Life in Pictures – Rudolf Zwirner and Julia Voss in conversation

Ich wollte immer Gegenwart [Give Me the Now] is the title of Rudolf Zwirner’s autobiography. On the occasion of Rudolf Zwirner’s 90th birthday, the PalaisPopulaire is showing A Life in Pictures: A Portrait of Seeing in honor of the important gallery owner, exhibition organizer, and cofounder of the world's first art fair.
The more than eighty works in the exhibition, which come from museums, private collections, as well as the Deutsche Bank Collection, which owes important acquisitions to the Zwirner gallery, paint an artistic portrait of this impressive, multi-faceted man. At the same time, however, they stand for the constants, ruptures, and developments in art and the art trade since the postwar period, which Zwirner decisively influenced and shaped. Rudolf Zwirner was already associated with most of the artists represented in the show in the early stages of their careers and participated in their later successes.
The art historian Julia Voss talks to Rudolf Zwirner about the impulses and projects he has brought to the art world, his passion for seeing and about life with images.