Strawalde (born 1931) is gifted in two visual art forms: under his pseudonym, he is known as a painter; as Jürgen Böttcher, he is a director and documentary filmmaker. His painting was classified as formalist in the GDR; he was expelled from the Association of Visual Artists and, as a result, his work was scarcely exhibited in public. It was not until after reunification that he was free to pursue his artistic work. Strawalde is regarded as one of the most important figures in 20th-century German art history. His works are held in major museums and collections.

Strawalde combines a thick, multi-layered application of paint – which lends his paintings a distinctive textural quality – with expressive line work. Forms emerge as figurative possibilities that engage in an intense dialogue with one another. His paintings are the result of a direct and intuitive process, executed through a long-practised dance of his hands. Experiences and memories, moods and feelings flow directly onto the canvas in expressive gestures.

And I maintain that when I have succeeded in creating a painting, it is made up of all the essences of a thousand things I have ever seen, smelled, tasted – and even of dreams.¹

As part of Berlin Art Week, the Michael Haas Gallery is opening a comprehensive solo exhibition. The artist will be present at the exhibition opening on Thursday, 10 September. An accompanying catalogue will be published.

¹ Sprechtext, in: Strawalde. Zeichnungen und Malerei, Catalogue Neue Berliner Galerie im Alten Museum,
Berlin 1990, p 12