Affiche Polychrome – Oscar Kokoschka – Exposition Au Kunsthaus – Circa 1986

Period : XXth century
Circa : 1986
Dimensions : Height : 128cm x Width : 90cm x Depth : 2,5cm

Oskar Kokoschka (1886-1980) was one of the leading Austrian painters and ambassadors of Viennese Expressionism and Modernism.
He was what we would today call a jack-of-all-trades. He wrote plays and stories, and created theatre sets and mosaics for churches. But he was above all a painter, and owes his fame to his portraits.

Kokoschka was above all interested in faces. Almost half of his works are busts. The artist’s aim was not so much to faithfully transcribe the model’s physical appearance, but the character traits hidden behind his face and personality. 
The subjects Kokoschka portrayed reveal their optimism, but also their uncertainties and inner turmoil, and sometimes also their grief and pain. 

Kokoschka’s style has often been described as painting the soul. Oskar Kokoschka’s obsession has always been to capture the whole person on canvas, not just their physical appearance. 
He painted Adolf Loos and Karl Kraus, Golda Meir, Ezra Pound, Theodor Heuss and Ludwig Ehrhardt.

In 1966, he was invited to paint the portrait of German Chancellor Konrad Adenauer. Adenauer. This painting – one of his most famous – occupied Angela Merkel’s office for 16 years, until recently. As close as possible to the current events of his time: the committed artist Oskar Kokoschka would probably have appreciated this privilege.