Farandole V, L-1970-5
Hans Hartung

Hans Hartung (1904–1989) was one of the most important exponents of  “art informel”  and took part in the internationally acclaimed “documenta” on multiple occasions.  Hartung studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Leipzig and Dresden. The painter worked exclusively with informal shapes for his whole life, developing a calligraphic, plastic quality in his work. Hartung began to participate in the most important exhibitions throughout Europe from 1949, receiving distinctions including the prestigious Rubens Prize, and was made an associate member of the Academy of Arts in Berlin. Later he was also named a member of the Académie des beaux-arts in Paris, and in 1981 received the Oskar Kokoschka Prize. The wide array of distinctions awarded to Hartung’s artwork even during his lifetime speak for the artist’s far-reaching international reputation. “[…] the painting that people call abstract […] is […] simply a new mode of expression, another human language, and more direct than early painting.” – Hans Hartung ►  Here  you can find other informel artists, including Karl Otto Götz.