Georg Baselitz’s ‘The Heroes’ arrives in London this autumn
A landmark exhibition dedicated to the German master's breakthrough series opens at the gallery, bringing together seminal works from the artist's formative years alongside loans from the world's most distinguished collections.
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Georg Baselitz’s ‘The Heroes 1965 to 66’ arrives at Thaddaeus Ropac in London this October as a remarkable tribute to one of post war European painting’s most transformative artistic statements. The exhibition gathers together the seminal works from this breakthrough series, a body of work that established the visual language and existential questioning which would animate the entire trajectory of the artist’s singular practice.
These paintings represent far more than a moment in Baselitz’s artistic evolution; they constitute a defining achievement of his early career and a watershed in contemporary art more broadly. Executed during the artist’s formative years, the ‘Hero’ series introduced the motifs, conceptual frameworks and thematic preoccupations that would become the hallmark of his distinctive vision, one characterised by figuration that challenges, provokes and ultimately illuminates the human condition.
The exhibition is distinguished by the exceptional provenance of its works. Assembled through loans from some of the world’s most celebrated institutions, including major collections and the artist’s family holdings, ‘The Heroes’ represents a curatorial undertaking of considerable significance. The works journey from esteemed repositories of contemporary art to present themselves in their full, commanding presence.
This marks a landmark moment for British audiences, as the first exhibition in the United Kingdom devoted exclusively to this seminal body of work. It offers an unparalleled opportunity to experience Baselitz’s revolutionary approach to figuration and to understand the philosophical concerns that propelled European painting into new territory during the post war years.
The gallery welcomes visitors to the opening reception on Tuesday 13 October from six until eight in the evening. Those seeking to explore the exhibition and its contexts further are invited to discover additional resources through the gallery’s channels.
Imagery courtesy of Thaddaeus Ropac (@thaddaeusropac).