Georg Karl Pfahler (8 October 1926 – 6 January 2002) was a
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
painter, printmaker and sculptor, and one of the leading proponents of
post-war art in Germany.
Biography
After enrolling at the
Academy of Fine Arts, Nuremberg
The Academy of Fine Arts Nuremberg (german: Akademie der Bildenden Künste Nürnberg) was founded in 1662 by Jacob von Sandrart and is the oldest art academy in German-speaking Central Europe.
The art academy is situated in Nuremberg.
Classes ...
between 1948 and 1949, Pfahler pursued his artistic training at
State Academy of Fine Arts in Stuttgart, which he attended until 1954. Although Pfahler had mainly worked in ceramics during his student days, as a freelance artist, he focused increasingly on painting. After his early "''Metropolitan''" pictures, Pfahler developed pictorial configurations around 1956, in which he experimented with the spatial effects of color in a manner reminiscent of the
pointillist
Pointillism (, ) is a technique of painting in which small, distinct dots of color are applied in patterns to form an image.
Georges Seurat and Paul Signac developed the technique in 1886, branching from Impressionism. The term "Pointillism" wa ...
technique used by
French Divisionists. This phase gave way to works which, from 1956, were based on
Action Painting
Action painting, sometimes called "gestural abstraction", is a style of painting in which paint is spontaneously dribbled, splashed or smeared onto the canvas, rather than being carefully applied. The resulting work often emphasizes the physical a ...
and
Art Informel
Informalism or Art Informel is a pictorial movement from the 1943–1950s, that includes all the abstract and gestural tendencies that developed in France and the rest of Europe during the World War II, similar to American abstract expressionis ...
. In 1956 he founded ''gruppe 11'' (''group 11'') together with
Günther C. Kirchberger. The group had exhibitions in Munich, Brussel, Rome and London in 1957–59.
The term "''formativ''" (''formative''), which he added to the titles of his pictures from 1958 on, marked his emancipation as a painter from the more formless style influenced by
Willi Baumeister
Willi Baumeister (22 January 1889 – 31 August 1955) was a German painter, scenic designer, art professor, and typographer. His work was part of the art competitions at the 1928 Summer Olympics and the 1932 Summer Olympics.
Life
Born in ...
. An intention to clarify new ways of seeing and fresh viewpoints lead to ink drawings, followed by collages. In the upcoming years, he simplified the geometrical forms and ultimately became mere vehicles for colors and their interrelations. In about 1962 block-like forms turned into crisply demarcated color surfaces, which elevate Pfahler to being the sole representative of "
Hard-Edge Painting
Hard-edge painting is painting in which abrupt transitions are found between color areas. Color areas are often of one unvarying color. The Hard-edge painting style is related to Geometric abstraction, Op Art, Post-painterly Abstraction, and C ...
" in Germany. He achieved his international breakthrough in exhibitions such as "''Signale''" 1965 in
Basel
, french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese
, neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...
, "''Formen der Farbe''" 1967 in
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...
,
Stuttgart and
Bern or "''Painting and Sculpture from Europe''" 1968 in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
, where he presented the pictures he created in the early 1960s. Given his interest in the spatial properties of color, it is in its nature that in 1965 Pfahler should have begun to really translate his works into the third dimension in his "''Farb-Raum-Objekte''" (''color space objects'') and the 1969 "''Farbräume''" (''color spaces''). Since 1965 realized numerous architectural projects, which have been a substantial contribution towards the development to art in architecture and public spaces in
post-war Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
. Amongst
Thomas Lenk,
Heinz Mack
Heinz Mack (born March 8, 1931) is a German artist. Together with Otto Piene he founded the ZERO movement in 1957. He exhibited works at documenta in 1964 and 1977 and he represented Germany at the 1970 Venice Biennale. He is best known for ...
and
Günther Uecker, Pfahler was chosen to provide the German pavilion to the
Venice Biennale
The Venice Biennale (; it, La Biennale di Venezia) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy by the Biennale Foundation. The biennale has been organised every year since 1895, which makes it the oldest of ...
in 1970 and in 1981 he was chosen to represent German art at the
Sao Paulo Biennale.
After working as a guest lecturer at
Helwan University
Helwan University is a public university based in Helwan, Egypt, which is part of Greater Cairo on over . It comprises 23 faculties and two higher institutes in addition to 50 research centers.
Overview
Helwan University is a member of the E ...
in
Cairo
Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the Capital city, capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, List of ...
in 1981, he taught at the Academy of Fine Arts, Nuremberg in Nuremberg from 1984 to 1992. Since 1982 Pfahler has lectured at the "''Internationale Sommerakademie für Bildende Kunst Salzburg''" in
Salzburg
Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label= Austro-Bavarian) is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872.
The town is on the site of the Roman settlement of ''Iuvavum''. Salzburg was founded ...
. In 1999 he was given the honorable task of designing the conference room of the Council of Elders in the
German Reichstag Building.
Personal exhibitions (selection)
* 2019 ''"Georg Karl Pfahler: Color and Space"''
QG Gallery, Brussels*2001: "''Georg Karl Pfahler''",
Von der Heydt Museum
The Von der Heydt Museum is a museum in Wuppertal, Germany.
The Von der Heydt Museum includes works by artists from the 17th century to the present time.
History
The museum is housed in the former city hall of Elberfeld, which in 1902 became a ...
,
Wuppertal
Wuppertal (; "''Wupper Dale''") is, with a population of approximately 355,000, the seventh-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia as well as the 17th-largest city of Germany. It was founded in 1929 by the merger of the cities and tow ...
* 2001: "''Georg Karl Pfahler''",
Kunstsammlungen Chemnitz,
Chemnitz
* 1992: "''Georg Karl Pfahler''",
Galerie Neuendorf,
Frankfurt am Main
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
* 1985: "''G. K. Pfahler – neue Bilder''",
Städtische Kunsthalle Mannheim,
Mannheim
Mannheim (; Palatine German: or ), officially the University City of Mannheim (german: Universitätsstadt Mannheim), is the second-largest city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg after the state capital of Stuttgart, and Germany's ...
* 1975: "''G. K. Pfahler: Präkonzeptionen''",
Staatsgalerie Stuttgart
The Staatsgalerie Stuttgart (, "State Gallery") is an art museum in Stuttgart, Germany, it opened in 1843. In 1984, the opening of the Neue Staatsgalerie (''New State Gallery'') designed by James Stirling transformed the once provincial gallery ...
,
Stuttgart
* 2019 "'' the corona pandamic starts(china)
Literature (selection)
* Galerie Neuendorf (1992). "Georg Karl Pfahler", Frankfurt am Main: Galerie Neuendorf Publishing
* Städtische Kunsthalle Mannheim (1985). "Georg Karl Pfahler. Neue Bilder", Mannheim: Medro Publishing
External links
Paintings of Georg Karl Pfahler in the German ReichstagWorks bei Georg Karl Pfahler
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pfahler, Georg Karl
1926 births
2002 deaths
German male painters
20th-century German painters
20th-century German sculptors
20th-century German male artists
German printmakers
Artists from Nuremberg
20th-century German printmakers