Wolf Vostell

WOLF VOSTELL (Leverkusen, Germany 1932 - Berlin, 1998).
Untitled, 1992, from the series "Olympic Suite".
Lithograph on 270 grams Vélin d'Arches paper, copy 171/250.
Signed and justified by hand.
Measurements: 90 x 63 cm.
The Olympic Suite is composed of 50 lithographs and serigraphs chosen to represent various contemporary artistic trends. It was published to commemorate the first centenary of modern Olympism. The chosen artists work in very diverse movements and styles, from the hyperrealism of Antonio López to the abstraction of Sol Lewitt, passing through abstract expressionism, the geometrism of Arden Quin, conceptual art, pop art, the new realism of Baldaccini and Rotella, or the new fauvism of Dokoupil, among others. Among the artists represented there are creators of great international renown, widely recognized by critics.
Wolf Vostel began his training in Cologne, where he studied painting, photography and lithography, and then entered the Wuppertal academy of free painting and experimental typography. In 1955 he moved to Paris to study painting and engraving at the Ecole Supérieure Nationale des Beaux-Arts. Subsequently, he continued his training at the Academy of Arts in Düsseldorf. Vostell coined the term "dé-coll/age" for his particular and creative juxtaposition of elements, which he applied both to his works, which included shreds of posters, smudged photographs and objects, and to his actions, the first of which would take place in 1954 in Wuppertal. His work is marked by the aesthetics of destruction, the result of his experience in contact with war, a language with which he tried to capture the aggressive and negative character of the contemporary world. His work continues to evolve: pioneer of video art, in the seventies he incorporates concrete as a key element of his works. His work is present in the museum that bears his name in the province of Cáceres, the Reina Sofía National Art Center and in other collections, both public and private.