Arnulf Rainer (Austrian, born 1929)
Büste im Nebel, 1977
Medium: Drypoint etching on BFK Rives wove paper
Dimensions: 29.8 × 20.8 cm (11 7/10 × 8 1/5 in)
Edition of 50: Hand-signed and numbered
Condition: Very good, with minimal foxing
Arnulf Rainer is widely regarded as one of the most influential Austrian painters working today and is a controversial and divisive figure in the art world. He is well known for his anti-establishment sentiments and intensely unconventional methods. In his career spanning half a century, the almost entirely self-taught Arnulf Rainer has merged an interest in fantastic Surrealism with the spontaneity of Art Informel. In the 1950s he began working toward a destruction of forms. This resulted in his most notable works, known as ‘overpaintings’ in which Rainer reworks – either partially or in full – paintings and photographs by other artists. This is done with a heavy impasto, thereby transforming existing works of art into his own with thick, gestural marks. On the topic of his overpaintings Rainer said: “the principles of my works—are the extinction of expression, permanent covering and contemplative tranquillity.” It is a technique to which Arnulf Rainer constantly returns. Today Rainer continues to commit himself to searching for new approaches to painting and constant development of painterly strategies. Austrian, born 1929.