Gerhard Hoehme (1920-1989) is one of the pioneering artists of abstraction and Art Informel in Europe. He created a multifaceted, experimental oeuvre on the threshold between painting and object. His early paintings are tachistically lyrical, and from 1957 onwards he began to abandon the conventional picture format and explore various sculptural and painterly manifestations of color. From 1965 onwards, following his lettering and structural paintings, he created spatial objects and installations with plastic cords and tubes. The cord leading out of the picture became an essential means of expression. Hoehme saw his works as energy fields that create direct connections between space and the viewer. His poetic, associative picture titles enhance the complexity of his works and refer to the intensive exchange with literature and music.

Gerhard Hoehme dealt with history, politics and myth. He was an artiste engagé whose influence extended far beyond the purely formal aspects of his work. As a professor at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf, he influenced younger artists such as Sigmar Polke and Chris Reinecke. Works by international artists such as Eva Hesse, Cy Twombly and Piero Dorazio testify to his charisma.

The exhibition and catalog present all of the artist’s canvases and works on paper in the Ströher Collection and the artist’s estate entrusted to the MKM Foundation. Six works from the Gerhard and Margarete Hoehme Foundation complement the presentation, which illustrates Hoehme’s overall work development. The earliest painting in the show dates from 1951, the latest was created in 1988, one year before his death. The richly illustrated catalog provides detailed historical and bibliographical documentation of all the works of art.