Georg Brandner

Georg Brandner
“Red Queen, 2015” 150 х 170 cm
“Meeting, 2014/2015” 170 x 120 cm
“Parfum, 2014/2015” 190 x 150 cm
“Tieferin, 2015” 190 x 100 cm
Glasstock “K1, 2014” 335 x 17 x 35 cm
Glasstock “K3, 2013” 315 x 15 x 35 cm
Glasstock “K4, 2013” 315 x 15 x 35 cm
“Herbstlaub, 2013” 66 x 15 x 4 cm
“Saule, 2008” 68 x 10 x 9 cm

Ongoing artistic change as a driving force for something new. Various materials and techniques open up new perspectives. Georg Brandner: a fascinating blend of colours, forms and materials. What defines the fascination of a work of art?  What characteristics do works of art which cause us to stop, observe and submerse ourselves need to have in order to be scrutinised and understood? The works by the Austrian artist Georg Brandner possess some of these special properties and cause the observer to feel inevitably captivated by the images. The artist, who lives and works in Niklasdorf (Styria), pairs abstract, expressive painting with collage and natural portrayals of vegetation-based shapes and structures in his works, forming a harmonious and powerful overall image. The fascinated observer feels the intense excitement emanating from these tangible works which encompass the artist’s masterful handling of materials, wealth of ideas and curious desire to experiment. At first glance, it is virtually impossible to completely take in the composition of his images. The evidence of the works with all their internal facets is only conveyed to the observer after detailed scrutiny because the artist integrates various experiences, impressions and feelings from his many trips. These are not just integrated indirectly into the visual imagery but are directly incorporated into the artistic style through the inclusion of various materials which the artist has collected on his travels such as various fabrics, leaves and plants from Thailand and India. Other products he works with regularly include jute, corrugated cardboard, quartz sand, card, paper, posters, silk cloths and lace. Delicate, filigree tissues are paired with coarse and rough materials and layers of colour to create a symbiosis which highlights the individual characteristics of Brandner’s works. In his latest works, such as Schattenblüte 2012/13, the artist remains true to his style of design expression – yet, despite or perhaps because of this, the works surprise and captivate the observer. The works reveal lots of interesting structures thanks to the incorporation of materials and lace and the use of various techniques: Georg Brandner paints and paints over; he sticks, sprinkles, smudges, smooths over and scratches his visual statement into the compositions, usually on a large canvas. The artist makes substantial changes to the pieces while he works on them – and also considers this essential in life, nature and the environment: nothing is less interesting to me than an object without a history, he says. Only change, like corrosion, transforms it into something special for me. These constant changes generate something new for me, says the artist. His work Herbarium 2012/13 is an educational example of this process. Here, the emergence of the plants portrayed (sometimes emphasised by colour accents) successively guides the eye of the observer up to a gently protruding area (created using a delicately structured material) reminiscent of an arabesque which seems to act like a kind of demarcation, similar to an ornamental frieze in architecture. This vertical view is emphasised by a red line which runs along the left-hand edge of the composition like a thread. The title of this image with its various different techniques is the same as its content – a herbarium is a collection of dried and pressed flowers and leaves. Looking at Brandner’s artistic creations overall, it is evident that he produces works of intense colour and bright explosions; on the other hand, the colours are regularly reduced in his works, as with his latest images. However, despite these toned back colourings, red is always a feature, albeit in a muted shade: red as a long thin line on the left-hand edge as in Herbarium, red as a central area in Flower Bag or red as a diagonally mirror-inverted shape in Schattenblüte. The signal colour of red thereby completes his significant visual language. For art historians and critics, this is a reflection of Brandner’s typical red shade. Brandner himself says: in my works, the colour red is perhaps not only an expression of the steel industry around me, geographically, and has a sensual and erotic aspect relating to my travels – but it is more a transformed green surrounding me on all sides in my home environment. Georg Brandner’s colour, shape and material compositions invite the observer to set off on an exciting voyage of discovery, to penetrate the depths of the multi-layered works (full of deliberate dynamism and zestful lightness) and to embrace the effect of the images with all the senses.

Personal exhibitions:

  • 1979 Leoben, Galerie 79, A.-Kat. m. Abb.
  • 1980 Bruck/Mur, Galerie E.
  • 1981 – 1986 Diverse +/- Ausstellungen
  • 1987 Leoben, Galerie Payer, A.-Kat. m. Abb.
  • 1988 Oslip, Galerie Mühle; Graz, Joanneum Ecksaal, A.-Kat. m. Abb.
  • 1989 New York (USA), Galerie Atlung; Stuttgart (Deutschland), Galerie Experiment; Zürich (Schweiz), Galerie Schlossgasse
  • 1990 St. Pölten, Galerie Maringer; Kapfenberg, Kulturhaus, A.-Kat. m. Abb.
  • 1991 Wien, Galerie Gabriel; Spa (Belgien), Galerie Paul Piront, A.-Kat. m. Abb.; Hillegom (Holland), Galerie Catharina
  • 1992 Küsnacht (Schweiz), Galerie Benkert
  • 1993 Brüssel (Belgien), Galerie Paul Piront; St. Pölten, Galerie Maringer; Leoben, Ausstellungszentrum Neues Rathaus, A.-Kat. m. Abb.
  • 1994 Eisenerz, Stadtmuseum, A.-Kat. m. Abb.
  • 1995 Krems, Galerie Gruber, A.-Kat. m. Abb.
  • 1996 Tournai (Belgien), Galerie Hors Limite
  • 1997 Berlin (Deutschland), Galerie Sievi, A.-Kat. m. Abb.; Graz, Galerie im Gewölbe, Buchpräsentation, Beiträge zur Kunstgeschichte Steiermarks
  • 1998 Vomperbach/Tirol, Galerie Angerer, A.-Kat. m. Abb.
  • 1999 Obdach, Galerie Haus Köstenberger
  • 2000 Schörfling, Galerie Zwach
  • 2001 Graz, Haus der Kunst, A.-Kat. m. Abb.; Wolfsberg, Galerie Atelier Berndt
  • 2002 Stuttgart (Deutschland), Galerie Kunst auf 87QM
  • 2003 Nagykanizsa (Ungarn), Galerie Trend; Kufstein, Galerie Ainberger
  • 2004 Bruck/Mur, Kunsthaus, A.-Kat. m. Abb.; Schörfling am Attersee, Galerie Zwach, A.-Kat. m. Abb.
  • 2005 Pécs (Ungarn), Csopor(t) Horda, A.-Kat. m. Abb.; Gerlingen (Deutschland), Galerie Kunstwerk
  • 2006 Graz, ARTE tage; Kapfenberg, Hotel Böhlerstern, Buchpräsentation, „roter – faden“ 1976/2006
  • 2007 Przemysl (Polen), Galerie Sztuki Wspótczesnej, A.-Kat. m. Abb.; Kapfenberg, Hotel Böhlerstern, Böhler Kalender 2008, m. Abb.
  • 2008 Berlin (Deutschland), Galerie Sievi; Fohnsdorf, Galerie Schloss Gabelhofen; Schörfling, Galerie Zwach, Buchpräsentation, Reisen 2000/08; Vomperbach/Tirol, Galerie Angerer
  • 2009 Bad Zwischenahn (Deutschland), Galerie Moderne; Troisdorf (Deutschland), Galerie Donath; Istanbul (Türkei), Österreichisches Kulturforum, A.-Kat. m. Abb.; Leoben, Startgalerie, A.-Kat. m. Abb.
  • 2010 Graz, Haus der Kunst; Mochental (Deutschland), Galerie Schrade, A.-Kat. m. Abb.; Remscheid (Deutschland), Kunst-Etagen-Galerie
  • 2011 Venlo (Holland), Kunsthandel Pieter Breughel; Bad Fischau, Galerie Schloss Fischau; Viernheim (Deutschland), Kunstraum Gerdi Gutperle; Graz, Haus der Kunst, A.-Kat. M. Abb., Lünen (Deutschland), Galerie Anders; Fohnsdorf, Galerie Schloss Gabelhofen, Buchpräsentation, 35 Jubeljahre
  • 2012 Trofaiach, Galerie Pfarrhof, 550 Jahre gotische Pfarrkirche zum HI. Rupert

Group exhibitions (selected):

  • 1980 Graz, Neue Galerie am Landesmuseum Joanneum, A.-Kat. m. Abb.
  • 1981 – 1987 Diverse +/- Gruppenausstellungen
  • 1988 Niklasdorf, Veranstaltungszentrum
  • 1989 Vordernberg, Kastenhaus, A.-Kat. m. Abb.
  • 1990 Leoben, Ausstellungszentrum Neues Rathaus, A.-Kat. m. Abb.; München (Deutschland), Galerie Krupan
  • 1992 Kopenhagen (Dänemark), Galerie Knabro
  • 1996 Leoben, Galerie Payer
  • 1997 Innsbruck, Kongresshaus, Galerie Angerer
  • 1998 Alicante (Spanien), Galeriea d´Arte
  • 1999 New York (USA), Millenniumsausstellung Broadway, A.-Kat. m. Abb.; Dunajska Streda (Slowakei), Galerie Art ME
  • 2000 Linz, Galerie Thiele; Budapest (Ungarn), ART Galerie EVE; Satu Marc (Rumänien), Muzel de Arta, A.-Kat. m. Abb.
  • 2001 Walsrode (Deutschland), Galerie Hohmann; Palm Desert (USA), Hart Gallery; Istanbul (Türkei), Museum der Marine; Verbania (Italien), Palazzo al Lago Maggiore, A.-Kat. m. Abb.
  • 2002 Velbert-Neviges (Deutschland), Vorburg Museum Schloss Hardenberg, A.-Kat. m. Abb.; Stuttgart (Deutschland), Galerie Kunst aus 87 QM; Chicago (USA), Hart Gallery
  • 2003 Frohnleiten, Kulturhauptstadt Graz 2003, A.-Kat. m. Abb.; Burg Rabenstein, „Meisterwerke der steirischen Moderne“, A.-Kat. m. Abb.; Hämeenlinna (Finnland), Art Gallery Ripustus
  • 2004 Begec (Serbien – Montenegro), Cultural Center, A.-Kat. m. Abb.; Sant´ Antioco (Italien), Isola Senza Confini, A.-Kat. m. Abb.; Timisoara (Rumänien), Art Museum; Wiener Neustadt, Domgalerie
  • 2005 Przemysl (Polen), Galerie Sztuki Wspótczesnej; Novi Sad (Serbien), Galerija Vojvodanske Banke, A.-Kat. m. Abb.; CH Roermond (Holland), Galerie Mariska Dirkx; Timisoara (Rumänien), Banat Museum
  • 2006 Spisa Nová Ves (Slowakei), Galerie Umelcov Spisa; El Gouna (Ägypten), Museum; Pécs (Ungarn), Pécs Gallery
  • 2007 Stuttgart (Deutschland), Galerie Tanner; Amman (Jordanien), Rowaq Al-Balka Art Gallery; Mosonmagyarovar (Ungarn), Hansagi Muzeum, A.-Kat. m. Abb.
  • 2008 Palm Desert (USA), Hart Gallery; Tumkur (Indien), Department of Architecture; Bochum (Deutschland), Stanzwerk, A.-Kat. m. Abb.; Bad Zwischenahn (Deutschland), Galerie Moderne
  • 2009 Bangalore (Indien), Gallary Time & Space; Fohnsdorf, Galerie Schloss Gabelhofen, A.-Kat. m. Abb.; Vladikavkas (Russland), Culture of North Ossetia; Moskau (Russland), Kulturhaus; Palm Desert (USA), CH. Hohmann Fine Art
  • 2010 Lünen (Deutschland), Galerie Anders; Maastricht (Holland), Galerie Docters Art; Ascona (Schweiz), Galerie Kröger, Vladikavkas (Russland), Culture of North Ossetia,
  • 2011 Troisdorf (Deutschland), Galerie Donath, Bad Zwischenahn (Deutschland), Galerie Moderne, Kassel (Deutschland), Galerie Puri
  • 2012 Wien, Galerie Szaal; Zwolle (Holland), IQ Kunst; Eindhoven (Holland), Artcompany

Art fairs:

  • 1988 Art Zürich
  • 1989 Art Nürnberg
  • 1989 – 2003 Lineart Gent
  • 1993 Art Los Angeles
  • 1996 Art New York
  • 1997 – 2012 Art Innsbruck
  • 1998 Art Barcelona
  • 2000 Lineart Linz
  • 2001 Kunstmesse Salzburg; Art Vienna
  • 2002 Art Bodensee
  • 2004 Art International Zürich; Art Pannonia Neusiedl/See
  • 2007 – 2009 Art Bodensee
  • 2009, 2012 - 2013 Art Karlsruhe
  • 2011 - 212 Wik & AM, Wien
Georg Brandner