Konrad KLAPHECK
BIOGRAPHY
Konrad Klapheck and Georges Goldfayn
courtesy Galerie Berthet-Aittouarès
Konrad Klapheck (1935 - 2023) was a major figure in Surrealism and German Pop Art. Born in Düsseldorf, he studied at the Academy of Fine Arts and turned to painting.
From his debut in the 1950s, he was interested in representing day-to-day objects, often symbols of modernity, such as typewriters, telephones, locks... These objects, meticulously reproduced and placed out of any context, seem to evade any attempt at comprehension.
From the 1970s onwards, Klapheck toys with perceptions, blurring the boundaries between reality and the imaginary. His paintings are filled with enigmatic elements, distorted figures and impossible architectures. He creates dreamlike worlds where the rational mingles with the odd.
From 1997 onwards, Klapheck introduces the human figure into his practice. His nudes, often inspired by ancient erotic photographs, explore themes of desire, sexuality and vulnerability. These images, like those of objects, are imbued with an unsettling ambiguity and strangeness.
Klapheck's body of work is rooted in a tradition of realistic painting which he then subverts. With great technique, he depicts his objects in a hyper-realistic manner, before rerouting them from their customary function, thus exploring the mysteries of perception, consciousness and desire. A prolific artist, he has explored a variety of media, from painting to printmaking as well as sculpture. His lifetime achievement has been acclaimed by critics and the general public alike, and can now be found in major international collections.
Konrad Klapheck passed away in 2023, leaving behind a rich and fascinating artistic legacy.
2024
- Georges Goldfayn, A surrealistic passion, Galerie Berthet-Aittouarès, Paris, France
- Surrealism, Centre Pompidou, Paris, France
2019
- Venus ex machina, Musée des Beaux-Arts de La Chaux-de-Fonds, France
2017
- Derrière le rideau, Galerie Lelong, Paris, France
- Honey I Rearranged The Collection - # 1 The Magic of Things. Perfidious Objects, Hamburger Kunsthalle, Hamburg, Germany
- Westkunst - Ostkunst. A Selection from the Collection, Ludwig Museum - Museum of Contemporary Art, Budapest, Hungary
2010
- Swing, Brother, Swing, Galerie Lelong, Paris, France
2009
- Art of Two Germanys/Cold War Cultures, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, United States
2008
- Correspondances Konrad Klapheck - Gustave Moreau, Musée d'Orsay, Paris, France
2005
- Konrad Klapheck, Musée d'art moderne et contemporain, Strasbourg, France
- Villa Klapheck, Galerie Lelong, Paris, France
2004
- Rien ne presse / Slow and steady / Festina lente, Musée d'art moderne et contemporain, Geneva, Switzerland
- Maschinen und Menschen, LVR-LandesMuseum Bonn, Bonn, Germany
- Konrad Klapheck - Tableaux, Mamco - Musée d´art moderne et contemporain, Geneva, Switzerland
2002
- Grand Bazar, The Living Room, Amsterdam, Netherlands
1999
- Surrealism - Two Private Eyes, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, United States
- Konrad Klapheck, portraits, Museum Kunstpalast, Düsseldorf, Germany
- Galerie Heiko Andreas, Düsseldorf, Germany
1998
- Château de Jau, France
1997
- Galerie Lelong, Paris, France
1996
- Galerie Lelong, Zurich, Switzerland
1995
- Galerie Brusberg, Berlin, Germany
1993
- Edward Thorp, New York, United States
1992
- Galerie Lelong, Zurich, Switzerland
1991
- Wolfgang Wittrock Kunsthandel, Düsseldorf, Germany
- André Breton and the Surrealism, Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid, Spain
- André Breton and the Surrealism, Centre Pompidou, Paris, France
1990
- Galerie Lelong, Paris, France & Zurich, Switzerland
1986
- Kunsthalle, Tübingen, Germany
- Staatsgalerie für moderne Kunst, Munich, Germany
1985
- Galerie Maeght Lelong, Paris, France
- Kunsthalle, Hamburg, Germany
1984
- Galerie Thomas Levy, Hamburg, Germany
1982
- Galerie Aimé Maeght, Paris, France
1980
- Galerie Aimé Maeght, Paris, France
- Wolfgang Wittrock Kunsthandel, Düsseldorf, Germany
1977
- Galerie Rudolf Zwirner, Cologne, Germany
1976
- Galerie Ernst Beyeler, Basel, Switzerland
- Jasa Fine Arts, Munich, Germany
1975
- Palais des Beaux-Arts de Bruxelles, Belgium
- Städtische Kunsthalle, Düsseldorf, Germany
1974
- Museum Boymans van Beuningen, Rotterdam, Netherlands
1972
- Galerie Arturo Schwarz, Milan, Italy
- Galerie La Medusa, Rome, Italy
- Amsterdam, Paris, Düsseldorf, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, United States
- Metamorphose de Dinges, Palazzo Reale, Milan, Italy
1971
- Galerie Rudolf Zwirner, Cologne, Germany
1969
- Sidney Janis Gallery, New York, United States
1968
- Galerie Arturo Schwarz, Milan, Italy
1967
- Kunst und Museumsverein, Wuppertal, Germany
- Kunst und Kunstgewerbeverein, Pforzheim, Germany
1966
- Société Kestner, Hanovre, Germany
- IV Biennale de Paris 1965, Paris Biennale, Paris, France
1965
- Galerie Ileana Sonnabend, Paris, France
- Brussels Palace of Fine Arts, Belgium
1964
- Haus am Lützowplatz, Berlin, Germany
- Robert Fraser Gallery, London, United Kingdom
1963
- Galerie Arturo Schwarz, Milan, Italy
- Galerie Rudolf Zwirner, Cologne, Germany
1962
- Galerie Rudolf Zwirner, Essen, Germany
1960
- Galerie Arturo Schwarz, Milan, Italy
1959
- Galerie Alfred Schmela, Düsseldorf, Germany
EXHIBITIONS
EDITION
GEORGES GOLDFAYN - A surrealistic passion
Editions Galerie Berthet-Aittouarès, 2024
Text by Annie Le Brun, Pierre Wat
Translated in English
Exhibition catalog
96 pages
Dimension 27 x 22 cm
ISBN : 978-2-490315-08-6
Prize : 30 €