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Quote by Georg Baselitz

“I have always had the feeling that other people are too stupid to discover interesting things. That's why I do it myself. I think of collecting as a way to show that I understand what's important better than others do.”

Quote by Georg Baselitz

Author

German painter known for his unique artistic style and reflections on German history. Baselitz's works often blend abstract and representational elements, characterized by strong colors and bold compositions. more

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“I started collecting my artist friends, artists like myself who nobody had yet noticed. In everything, all I am collecting, so to speak, are my friends - artist friends.”

Author:Georg Baselitz

“Nowhere in my collection do I, say, have a Auguste Renoir painting. Because everybody knows that this is a good painter without me having to demonstrate it.”

Painting Painter

Author:Georg Baselitz

“When Michael Werner saw a painting of mine, such as Die grosse Nacht im Eimer, which back then nobody wanted and everybody thought was ridiculous, he realized that this was the right provocation, that it represented the feeling of the times in the right way.”

Feelings Painting Ridiculous

Author:Georg Baselitz

“I remember that Michael Werner told me about a famous collector, and Michael set up an appointment for us to meet. This man looked around the room and at my pictures. Then he said, "Young man, why are you doing these horrible things? Look out the window. There are nice girls out there. It's springtime. Look at how beautiful the world can be. You'll ruin your health by smoking so much and doing such tortured things."”

Men World Beautiful Remember Girl Nice Window Horrible Smoking Springtime Nice Girl

Author:Georg Baselitz

“I don't know who made up this sort of greatest-hits list for artists. If one artist isn't moving forward anymore, then it's assumed another one is going to take their place. With Francis Bacon's death, a whole genre of art died.”

Art Moving Artist Moving Forward

Author:Georg Baselitz

“I am not a representative of anything. When art historians or critics or the public put somebody in a drawer like this, it has a tranquilizing, paralyzing effect. Artists are individuals. They have ideas, and the conventions for one's self as an individual are not for a group. There are always those who follow the group, but they belong in the margins. I refuse to be placed within, or added to, one particular school.”

Art School Artist Individual Critics Historian

Author:Georg Baselitz

“When I began as an artist, I already did not like expressionism, or abstract expressionism, because abstract painting had already been done. I did not want to belong to any one group or the other, and I'm not one or the other.”

Done Artist Painting Abstract

Author:Georg Baselitz

“In the beginning, the energy involved to create came from my reaction to the work of other artists. The force behind this was aggression. The art that I saw was great, but I had to reject it, because I could not continue in the same direction. So I had to do something entirely different. It had to be so different, so extreme, that those who loved pop art, for instance, hated me. And this was my strength.”

Art Different Artist Energy Hated Aggression Pop Art

Author:Georg Baselitz

“In a place like the Guggenheim, I would like to be a representative of arte povera. This would be my ideal.”

Author:Georg Baselitz

“We have seen so many exhibits in recent years where the exhibition design was aesthetically beautiful. In this case, if someone wants to get something out of the exhibit, they must neglect the aesthetics and look at my pictures.”

Beautiful Design Neglect

Author:Georg Baselitz