Remembering abstract artist Karl Otto Götz
He was one of the most significant contributors to abstract art and paved the way for modernism. Gerhard Richter and Sigmar Polke were among his students. German painter Karl Otto Götz has died at the age of 103.
Pioneer of abstract art
Karl Otto Götz is pictured in his house in central-western Germany in front of one of his works. It was at home in Westerwald that he passed away on August 19 at the age of 103. The artist had lived there with his second wife and former student Rissa since the mid-1970s.
Paint and glue
Götz typically created large-scale paintings, covering them with paint and glue before removing the elements while leaving behind lines and shapes. Pictured here are "Vernäht" (Sewn Up, 2003), "Dornbusch" (Thornbush, 2002) and "Eelbo" (2004). The works were shown in 2004 at the Suermondt-Ludwig-Museum in Götz's hometown of Aachen to mark his 90th birthday.
Back to the heart
When Götz turned 100 in 2013, the Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin dedicated an exhibition to the representative of informal art. His approach, which emphasized feelings, intuition, spontaneity and coincidence, was a reaction to geometric abstraction.
Abstract beauty
Götz became famous for his large-scale black-and-white compositions, which seem to resemble explosions. "Abstract is more beautiful," was his motto. Götz, who was invited to take part in both the Venice Biennale and Documenta over the years, had his stylistic roots in surrealism. The two works pictured here were exhibited in the Küppersmühle museum in Duisburg in 2014.
Painting in piece
In his late 90s Götz lost his sight due to glaucoma. But that didn't keep him from painting - with the help of his wife Rissa. Götz's oeuvre also includes steel reliefs, linocuts and woodcarvings, along with terracotta and ceramic works. He also wrote poetry. In one poem, he composed the line: "Let me paint in peace."