The Von der Heydt-Museum in Wuppertal is honouring the 100th birthday of Guido Jendritzko, one of the most important German artists of the 20th century, with a comprehensive exhibition. The show offers a fascinating insight into the multifaceted work of Jendritzko, who was born in Kirchhain/Niederlausitz in 1925 and shaped the art scene in Wuppertal from the 1960s onwards. From early abstract sculptures and expressive graphics to spectacular performances and large-format photographic works, the exhibition spans the arc of his oeuvre.
It is particularly impressive how Jendritzko radically reorganised his artistic work from the 1970s onwards and developed the genre of “intimate performance”, which thematised the relationship between man and woman. In the 1980s, photography increasingly became the centre of his interest and led to large-scale installations reflecting the relationship between man and his environment. Jendritzko’s work — which is now in the possession of numerous museums and public spaces — is presented at the Von der Heydt-Museum with a wide range of exhibits and many previously unseen works from his estate. The exhibition impressively shows how Jendritzko developed from an abstract sculptor to a conceptual, socially committed artist and how he always understood his artistic work in the context of current events, architecture and cultural policy.
