Georg Baselitz

Selbstporträt daneben, 1995

Two of the expressive-representational paintings from the young Georg Baselitz’ first one-man show were removed by the Berlin police on suspicion of pornography in 1963. This confiscation by the public prosecutor’s office made the painter from the Oberlausitz the talk of the town overnight, at least among West German art critics. Despite the great variety of motif that characterizes the extensive work of the painter, sculptor, draughtsman and graphic artist to this day, the strong biographical slant to the repertoire is unmistakable. Biographical elements became a dominant theme in the mid-1990s. The painting Selbstporträt daneben [Self-portrait on the side],1995, also dates from this period. It revolves around the problems of tying figures, ground and ornament together, around questions of constituting space, the juxtaposition and joining of lines and surfaces. Selbstporträt daneben is not an attempt at a realistic portrait but rather tries to come to terms with the tradition of the self-portrait in painting