Galerie Michael Werner is delighted to present the exhibition A.R. PENCK - Selbstportraits. A catalogue accompanying the exhibition will be published with texts by Ulf Jensen and Nils Emmerichs.
The exhibition will be on view from September 11 until November 1, 2025.
Press release
In der durch den Kalten Krieg geteilten Welt trägt der Westwind in den 1960er-Jahren einen Luftballon über den Eisernen Vorhang hinweg. Der Ballon ist mit einem Slogan des US-Künstlers Warhol beschriftet. Im westlichen Winkel des Sowjetreichs, der DDR, fängt ein einziger Künstler diesen Ballon ab und liest: „I think everybody should be a machine“. Die Obrigkeit in Moskau macht Warhol zum Gespött, weil der Amerikaner die verleugnete russische Avantgarde ins Gedächtnis ruft. A.R. Penck, der in Dresden um seine Stellung als Künstler kämpft, kann diesen Fund bestens verwenden. Im Untergrund des sowjetischen Vasallenstaats arbeitet er die „Verschiebung der Haltung Warhols“ aus. Er bringt den Slogan mit dem eigenen Programm auf den neuesten Stand: „The man as a computer“.
In the world divided by World War II, in the 1960s, the west wind whisks an air balloon up and across the Iron Curtain. The balloon bears a slogan by US artist Warhol. In East Germany, the westernmost nook of the Soviet Empire, one single artist intercepts this balloon and reads: “I think everybody should be a machine.” The authorities in Moscow have poured scorn on Warhol because the American brings back memories of the repressed Russian avantgarde. A.R. Penck, who is busy struggling in Dresden to defend his position as an artist, is able to use his find to optimal effect. From his base in the underground in the Soviet vassal state he elaborates a “shift in Warhol’s stance”. With his own program, he updates the slogan to read: “The man as a computer”.
The exhibition A.R. PENCK - Selbstportraits will be on view from September 11 to November 1, 2025. The show is accompanied by a catalogue with texts by Ulf Jensen and Nils Emmerichs.
Opening hours are Tuesday to Friday, 11 am – 6 pm, and Saturday, 10 am – 4 pm.
For any further inquiries, please contact the gallery at galeriewerner@michaelwerner.de or visit our website: www.michaelwerner.de. Follow the gallery on Instagram.