Rolf Lukaschewski

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"Brandenburger Tor", Rolf Lukaschewski, Berlin, Germany - lithographer (72 × 102 cm)

Rolf Lukaschewski (born December 1, 1947 in Schleswig ) is a German artist and painter of Neo-Expressionism and Pop Art . Today he lives and works mainly in his adopted Swiss home in Montreux on Lake Geneva .

Life and career

From 1968 to 1978 he studied painting and sculpture in Cologne at the University of Applied Sciences for Art & Design under Professors Dieter Kraemer (painting) and Karl Burgeff (sculpture). He was able to complete his academic training as a master class student with distinction. Rolf Lukaschewski made his mark with his large-format, expressive paintings that are critical of society and time, such as B. his “Opera Ball Triptych”, his international position in painting in the 21st century. In his own formal language and color scheme, he synthesizes a variety of divergent styles that are committed to the tradition and avant-garde of classical modernism, but at the same time deal with it.

Works

His subjects deal intensively with current events and the zeitgeist of the 21st century. Even in his early years, Lukaschewski placed people with their social, cultural and political environment in the foreground. Initially shaped by the post-war period, the destruction and the rapid upturn in Germany, he created the cycle of pictures “Mother / Trümmerfrauen”, in which he devoted himself to the role of the emancipated and independent modern woman. Internationally known and outstanding personalities and style icons of the time, such as John F. Kennedy , Marilyn Monroe , Agatha Christie , Peggy Guggenheim or Marlene Dietrich , some of whom he got to know personally, came more and more into the focus of the artist. The amalgamation of private person and symbolic figure, inner and outer worlds, shaped the style of Lukaschewski's work. The extent to which people are influenced by their external environment is shown in one of his most famous works, the “Opera Ball” triptych that hangs in the Alte Oper Frankfurt today. The change takes place from a style inspired by the New Objectivity and its famous representatives ( Otto Dix and George Grosz ) to an approach to Neo-Expressionism and Pop Art . The earthy colors give way, the color spectrum becomes significantly lighter, the ductus stronger, a very individual expressionist furious manner of expression enters Lukaschweski's oeuvre.

Expression and Analysis

The political upheavals in the state and the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 are echoed in the oil paintings of the following years. His picture cycles “Brandenburgertor” and “German Reunification” take account of these events and their individual portraits set a monument to statesmen Ronald Reagan , Michail Gorbatschow and Helmut Kohl . The focus is still on the analysis of time, space and the individual. This becomes particularly evident at the beginning of the nineties in his Brandenburg Gate cycle of the trilogy “German Reunification”. He continues this examination of the moral and contemporary aspects of social change in his analytical portraits, for example in his portrait of Pope John Paul II and his portrayal of "Jesus Christ" at the 2000 year celebration.

Time and pop culture

The examination of the current cultural and social phenomena of the 21st century is continued in Lukaschewski's images of heroes of real and fictional personalities, from Madonna to Spider-Man . Lukaschewski once again adapts to the upheavals of the times with his own, very personal interpretation and a renewal of his artistic expression, especially the vibrations of our digital age. The image depth becomes more extensive without losing its analytical sharpness.

Works / projects (selection)

  • 1984: “Opera Ball” triptych, Alte Oper, Frankfurt / Main, Germany
  • 1984–1986: “Cold War” and “Human: Modern Heroism” cycles, Normandy, France
  • 1991: “Brandenburger Tor” cycle, Red City Hall, Berlin
  • 1992: Trilogy "German Reunification": "Helmut Kohl", "Mikhail Gorbatschow" and "Ronald Reagan", private collection by G.
  • 2000: "Jesus Christ" and portrait of Pope John Paul II, Vatican, Rome
  • 2001–2004: Still life, private collection Abu Dhabi, UAE
  • 2005–2008: Heroes of the screen: Spider-Man, Catwoman, 007, private collections, Switzerland, Germany

Solo exhibitions (selection)

  • 1975: Galerie de la Passerelle Saint-Louis, Paris, France
  • 1980: Galerie Jean-Pierre Lavignes, Paris, France
  • 1983: Gallery Amaury Taittinger, New York, USA
  • 1984: International Art Fair, London, Great Britain
  • 1985: Art 16 Basel, Basel, Switzerland
  • 1987: L'Hippodrome, Douai, France
  • 1988: Art Forum Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
  • 1988: Galerie Eva Poll, Berlin, Germany
  • 1988: Museum Schleswig, Schleswig, Germany
  • 1988: Lavignes-Bastille Gallery, Paris, France
  • 1989: Bennigsen Castle, Hanover, Germany
  • 1994: Auditorium Stravinski, Montreux, Switzerland
  • 1994: Kongresshaus, Zurich, Switzerland
  • 1997: World Economic Summit (WEF), Davos, Switzerland
  • 1998: Polish Consulate, Zurich, Switzerland
  • 2001: Bellini Foundation, Cannes, France
  • 2003: Galerie Zabbeni, Vevey, Switzerland
  • 2004: Cultural Office City of Königstein i.Taunus, Königstein, Germany
  • 2005: Cultural Foundation Center, Abu Dhabi, Ver. Arab Emirates
  • 2006: Courtyard Gallery, Dubai, Ver. Arab Emirates
  • 2007: Galerie Zabbeni, Geneva, Switzerland
  • 2008: Lavignes Bastille Gallery, Paris, France
  • 2010: Hofgalerie, Sylt, Germany
  • 2015: FIRST GALLERY of Fine Art, Bad Homburg, Germany

Public exhibition locations (selection)

  • Old Opera, Frankfurt / M. Germany
  • Musée National Art d'Moderne, Paris, France
  • Musee de Dunkerque, Dunkerque, France
  • Museum Schleswig, Schleswig, Germany
  • Red City Hall, Berlin, Germany
  • Municipal Gallery in Lenbachhaus, Munich, Germany
  • Holocaust Museum, Washington, USA
  • Cultural Foundation Center, Abu Dhabi, Ver. Arab Emirates
  • Vatican, Rome, Italy
  • Bundeshaus, Bern, Switzerland
  • Auditorium Stravinski, Montreux, Switzerland
  • State of Maine Museum, Maine, USA

literature

  • Emmanuel Bénézit : Dictionnaire Des Peintres, Dessinateurs Et Graveurs. Paris (from) 1955.
  • Jean Louis Ferrier (Ed.): L'aventure De l'Art. Hachette / Paris 1988.
  • Elizabeth Fuchs: Schleswig City Museum. Wachholtz 1989.
  • Andrè Parinaud: Les flagrants delits de Lukaschewski. Paris 1988.
  • Yann Le Pichon, Jean-Louis Ferrier (Ed.): Chronicle of Art in the 20th Century. Ostfildern 1990.

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Lukaschewski, Rolf
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German artists and painters of neo-expressionism and pop art
DATE OF BIRTH December 1, 1947
PLACE OF BIRTH Schleswig