Georg Baselitz Interview: My Idol Edvard Munch

Meet the legendary painter Georg Baselitz in this short interview about his idol Edvard Munch and their mutual interest in psychological mutilation: “There is a method of drawing through which one recognizes that something isn’t right.“ Munch, who often worked with psychological themes, became a great influence on German Expressionism in the early 20th century. In this interview Baselitz explains why he liked Munch so much and wonders: “Perhaps Munch himself brought about the condition of not quite keeping it together.“ Baselitz discovered Munch in his fathers library, and part of his fascination with Munch had to do with the fact that he avoided collaborating with the Nazis, who were actually quite interested in Munch, Baselitz says. Georg Baselitz was born Hans-Georg Kern in 1938, in what was later to become East Germany. In the 1960s the police took action against his painting “Die große Nacht im Eimer“ because of its provocative depiction of a small dwarf like figure with a large penis. In the 1970s, Baselitz was part of a group of Neo-Expressionist artists (“Neue Wilden“) focusing on deformation. Baselitz became famous for his upside-down images and was seen as a revolutionary painter. From a European perspective, Baselitz’ style is seen as postmodern. Baselitz is currently a professor at the Hochschule der Künste art academy in Berlin. Georg Baselitz was interviewed by Marc-Christoph Wagner Camera by Jesper Bundgaard Editing by Per Henriksen Produced by Marc-Christoph Wagner Copyright: Louisiana Channel, produced by Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, 2014. Supported by Nordea-fonden