Georg Karl Pfahler

Basic data

The artist Georg Karl Pfahler is today called the main representative of the German Hard Ege. Characteristic are his artworks, which consist of a reduced geometric visual language of clearly delineated homogeneous surfaces and colors.

• Born: October 8, 1926
• Died on: January 6, 2002
• Place of birth: Emetzheim, Bavaria, Germany
• Nationality: German
• Studied at: Academy of Fine Arts, Nuremberg; State Academy of Fine Arts Stuttgart
• Teachers: Willi Baumeister, Manfred Henninger, Karl Hils, Gerhard Gollwitzer
• Similar artists: Heinz Mack, Günter Uecker, Rupprecht Geiger
• Stilistic direction: Geometric abstraction, Hard-edge painting

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Georg Karl Pfahler Print Serigraph Untitled IV

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Georg Pfahler Serigraph Print Untitled I

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Georg Karl Pfahler Print Serigraph Untitled II

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Biography

Georg Karl Pfahler was born on October 08, 1926 in Emetzheim near Weißenburg in Bavaria. He spent his childhood on his parents' farm. By chance he met art students who inspired him to apply to study at the Academy of Fine Arts in Nuremberg.

After two semesters, Pfahler transferred to the Stuttgart Art Academy in 1950. Here he turned increasingly to free painting. His teachers were Gerhard Gollwitzer, Manfred Henninger, Karl Hils and Willi Baumeister. The latter in particular had a great influence on Pfahler's art, whose first paintings are reminiscent of his teacher's early work in their pointillist style of painting. Subsequently, the painter approaches "centered paintings", which are created in the style of Barnett Newman's color fields. Pfahler views color as matter, which he applies to the surface, the field of action.

Together with fellow artists, such as Günther C. Kirchberger, Pfahler founded the "gruppe 11" in 1956, which was oriented towards Action Painting and Informel. However, only two years later the painter broke away from the Informel style. He created his "formative" paintings, which feature clearly defined surfaces and consist of a reduced color spectrum. Pfahler found his individual pictorial language and ostensibly explored the relationships between form, color, surface and space.

In the 1960s, the artist achieved his international breakthrough. In particular, the exhibition "Signale" (1965) in Basel or the exhibition "Painting and Sculpture from Europe" (1968) contributed significantly to this and cemented his reputation as one of the leading painters of his time.

In the 1970s, further worldwide exhibitions followed, including his representation of Germany at the XXXV Venice Biennale together with Heinz Mack, Günther Uecker and Thomas Lenk. In addition, it can be observed that the pictorial forms of his works become more gestural and he sets blocks of color in a minimalist manner in front of white backgrounds. In addition, in the early 1980s he received a visiting professorship at Helwan University in Cairo and in 1984 followed an appointment as professor at the Nuremberg Art Academy.

In the 1990s, on the other hand, Pfahler's forms again become more liquid and overlap in pictorial space. In addition, in 1998 he receives the honorable commission to design one of the most important parliamentary bodies, the Council of Elders Hall in the Reichstag building, in Berlin.

Throughout his life, Georg Karl Pfahler's main theme in his art was color as the sole carrier of the pictorial idea and, at the same time, the development of space and color from the color used. He received numerous honors for his artistic work, such as the Prize of the Bavarian Academy of Fine Arts Munich. The artist died in 2002 at the age of 75 in his birthplace Emetzheim.

Exhibitions

• 27.03.2021 - 07.02.2021 Ways of Seeing Abstraction - Works from the Deutsche Bank Collection – PalaisPopulaire, Berlin.
• 22.02.2020 - 22.03.2020 „…weggenommen, was zu sehen sein soll“ – Kunstverein Bad Salzdetfurth e.V., Bodenburg.
• 27.03.2019 - 19.05.2019 Platons Erben – Die Sammlungen im Kunstmuseum Bayreuth - Kunstmuseum Bayreuth.
• 21.05.2017 - 17.09.2017 Rot kommt vor Rot - Museum Ritter, Waldenbuch.
• 07.05.2016 - 13.06.2015 Vom Gestus zum Zeichen – Zwischen Informel und Hard Edge - Galerie Schlichtenmaier - Stuttgart.
• 15.09.2013 - 03.11.2013 The Sixties. Kunst und Kultur der 1960er Jahre in Deutschland - Galerie der Stadt Sindelfingen.
• 11.05.2013 - 01.09.2013 30 Jahre Sammlung Grauwinkel - Vasarely Museum Budapest.
• 01.11.2012 - 16.12.2012 THE PRESENCE OF PICTURES. German Painting - NCCA National Centre for Contemporary Arts, Moscow.
• 05.05.2012 - 01.07.2012 Metamorphosen. Informel und Abstraktion aus der Sammlung Bergmeier Halle/Berlin - Kunstverein Talstrasse, Halle / Saale.
• 04.11.2011 - 14.01.2012 Schulz - Pfahler: Signs - WAGNER + PARTNER Berlin.
• 18.08.2011 - 22.01.2012 Phänomen Informel - Museum für Aktuelle Kunst - Sammlung Hurrle, Durbach.
• 03.04.2011 - 29.05.2011 geschenkt – gestiftet – erworben - Kunstsammlungen Chemnitz.
• 12.03.2010 - 30.05.2010 Minimalism Germany 1960s - Daimler Contemporary, Berlin.

Awards

• 1957: Art Prize of the Youth of the State of Baden-Württemberg, Stuttgart.
• 1972: Art Prize of the National Gallery Wroclaw.
• 1975: Art Prize of the Youth of the State of Baden-Württemberg.
• 1984: Gold medal at the Norwegian Graphic Arts Biennale in Fredrikstad.
• 1992: Art Prize of the City of Stuttgart.
• 1992: Art Award of the City of Weißenburg.
• 1996: Friedrich-Baur-Prize of the Bavarian Academy of Fine Arts.
• 1998: Nürnberger Nachrichten Art Prize, Nuremberg.

Literature

• Georg Karl Pfahler: Bilder und Objekte, Ausstellungskatalog, Ingrid Mössinger & Beate Ritter (Publ.), Leipzig 2001.
• Georg Karl Pfahler: Wege zur Farbform 1956-1970, Galerie Schlichtenmaier (Publ.), Stuttgart 1996.
• Georg Karl Pfahler. Vom Informellen zum Formativen: Gemälde, Collagen, Zeichnungen 1956-1963, Galerie Schlichtenmaier (Publ.), Stuttgart 1991.
• Lenk Mack Pfahler Uecker. XXXV biennale di venezia padiglione tedesco, exhibition catalog, Dieter Honisch & Museum Folkwang Essen (Publ.), Essen, Stuttgart 1970.

Collections

Germany

• Berlin - Neue Nationalgalerie
• Chemnitz - Kunstsammlungen Chemnitz
• Durbach - Museum für Aktuelle Kunst - Sammlung Hurrle
• Erlangen - Kunstpalais Erlangen
• Essen - Museum Folkwang
• Leverkusen - Museum Morsbroich
• Otterndorf - Museum gegenstandsfreier Kunst
• Stuttgart- Kunstmuseum Stuttgart

France

• Mouans-Sartoux - Espace de l´Art Concret

Poland

• Chelm - Muzeum Ziemi Chelmskiej
• Lodz - ms Muzeum Sztuki

USA

• New York - Museum of Modern Art MoMA

Weblinks

• Official Website Detailled biography, collection, exhibition and artwork overview.
• Georg Karl Pfahler Kunstaspekte exhibition and collection overview.