Imi Knoebel (born Klaus Wolf Knoebel) focuses in his oeuvre on analytical series of works in which the artist explores the relationships between space, medium and colour. As a student in Joseph Beuys’ class at the Düsseldorf Art Academy, he created one of the most significant works of minimalism in 1968: Raum 19 (Room 19). His first colour paintings were created in 1974; prior to that, the artist worked exclusively in a purist style with light projections and monochrome painting.
After his polygonal panel paintings (Mennigebilder) in 1975, he devoted himself to playful, free and polychromatic forms from the second half of the 1970s onwards.
His minimalist approach to the core elements of modern painting can be traced back to his role model, Kazimir Malevich. Under the influence of Malevich and his ‘Black Square,’ Knoebel created two-dimensional sculptures. They were made of sheet metal and coloured aluminium, which were layered to form patterns. The ‘Gartenbild’ series blurs the boundaries between sculpture and painting. The visible brushstrokes allow the viewer to follow the creative process, and by changing perspectives, one can influence the intensity of the brushstrokes and colour.
