Early Prints
March 2–May 22, 2016
Schaumainkai 63
60596 Frankfurt am Main
Germany
T +49 69 605098200
F +49 69 605098111
info@staedelmuseum.de
Presenting a focused selection of 30 works, the exhibition at the Städel Museum highlights Sigmar Polke’s (1941–2010) early prints. The artist ranks among the outstanding protagonists of the 20th century German art scene. For the works he printed from 1967 to 1979 he preferred offset or silkscreen printing, two rather unsophisticated techniques in terms of craftsmanship and trivial methods from the artistic point of view, to transport and spread seemingly random, irritating comments on art and society. Other works by Polke surprise us because of their unusual blend of different printing techniques and material features: they combine silkscreen printing with blind blocking and punching or feature haptic surface structures, for example. Having a work printed in offset always requires a professional printer. This is why Polke dedicated himself all the more to which motifs and materials he chose. In an era informed by the belief in growth and upheavals critical of society, Polke stuck to his messages grounded on observation, wit, and irony in his printed work. The printed image, circulated by the mass media or photographically staged by the artist, remained an essential foundation of his work as an artist. The presentation in the Exhibition Gallery of the Städel’s Department of Prints and Drawings shows a high-carat and concentrated selection of Polke’s early prints, fathoming the works’ special quality.
The presentation in the Exhibition Gallery of the Department of Prints and Drawings offers a comprehensive survey of Sigmar Polke’s early printed work. Thanks to the Deutsche Bank Collection at the Städel Museum, the entire selection of exhibits comes from the Städel’s own holdings. 28 sheets are part of the complex of 600 works from the Deutsche Bank Collection transferred to the Städel in 2008.
Director: Max Hollein
Curator: Dr. Jutta Schütt, Head of the Städel’s Department of Prints and Drawings after 1750
Press contact: Axel Braun (Head of Press/Public Relations):
T (+49 69) 605098 170 / F (+49 69) 605098 188 / presse [at] staedelmuseum.de
Press material: click here
