The Museum der Moderne Salzburg is dedicating two exhibitions across its venues to the internationally renowned artist Georg Baselitz, who has long been based in Salzburg. Together, these parallel presentations offer a comprehensive overview of his practice, spanning from his early drawings to his monumental late works, and tracing the evolution of his distinctive visual language across decades.

At the Rupertinum, the exhibition focuses on Baselitz’s graphic production, bringing together works on paper that are often more intimate in scale. These pieces reveal the immediacy of his mark-making and the experimental nature of his approach to drawing and printmaking. In contrast, the presentation at the Mönchsberg highlights a selection of large-format paintings created over the past ten years, emphasizing the physicality and expressive force that define his later work.

Particularly striking are the imposing portraits that dominate this recent phase of his oeuvre. These works engage deeply with themes of aging and mortality, while also reflecting on the artist’s own life and personal history, including his long relationship with his wife Elke. Through these powerful images, Baselitz confronts the passage of time with both raw intensity and introspective depth, transforming autobiography into a universal meditation on existence.