Jonas Burgert – Enigmatic Narrative
A solo exhibition with the artist in residence at the gallery
October 1 – November 23, 2008
German painter Jonas Burgert is a rising star in the European art world. He is known for a complex and mysterious narrative—even epic—style of painting. According to Burgert, his work addresses “the meditative chaos of nature and the interrelated elements of human cultures….One needs spiritual copies of oneself in order to have a dialogue between one’s inner characters.” Denver Art Museum curator Christoph Heinrich describes the spaces in Burgert’s paintings as “theatre stages…He is not looking for a window onto the real world; he creates a world of his own, where figures are staged within metaphoric parables. They are never meant to be individual human beings, but allegories for the human existence. In paintings like Temple, now on display at DAM, Burgert creates a conundrum that deals with human characteristics and qualities.”
Jonas Burgert (born 1969) lives and works in Berlin. He trained at the Hochschule der Künste in Berlin and received his MA in 1996. He has had two major solo exhibitions in Europe and many juried group exhibitions since then. Enigmatic Narrative at the Victoria H. Myhren Gallery will be his first solo exhibition in the US. Burgert will be in residence at the Myhren Gallery throughout his exhibition, and he will participate in studio art classes and critiques at the School of Art & Art History. The gallery will be designed to accommodate a temporary painting studio for Burgert’s use during his residency.
Burgert’s paintings were also shown at the Denver Art Museum and at MCA Denver. A catalog featuring an essay by DAM’s Christoph Heinrich is available for $15. *SOLD OUT
German art spoken here by Kyle Macmillan, Denver Post.
Galleries sharing the wealth by Mary Voelz Chandler, Rocky Mountain News.
Tradition renewed with artist mentoring by Kristal Griffith, DU Today.