Until his untimely death in a plane crash in 2002 the young Luxembourg artist Michel Majerus was considered by many as a rising star of the art scene. In his mostly large-scale paintings and installations, Michel Majerus sampled the imagery of the various areas of life and social groups. Kraftwerk, Super Mario, Toy Story, Space Invaders, 70s Pop Art, Tron, The Simpsons, Jack in the Box – everything had a place in the imagery of Michel Majerus. He made use of artistic styles and artists like Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat or Gerhard Richter in the same way he used company logos, cartoon or computer game characters, or motives from advertising. What he absorbed, he processed and combined, and put it out again in his paintings.
With the exhibition Michel Majerus, the Kunstmuseum Stuttgart presents a comprehensive overview of the work of Michel Majerus. The show brings together over hundred paintings and installations from museums and private collections from all over the world. Our video provides you with a walk-through of the show and an introduction to Michel Majerus work by Ulrike Groos, Director of the Kunstmuseum Stuttgart.
As a highlight of the Michel Majerus exhibition the Kunstmuseum Stuttgart is realizing one of Michel Majerus’ most famous works, the large-scale sculpture if we are dead, so it is. It’s a forty-two-meter long skateboard ramp whose surface Michel Majerus has painted with his motifs. It will be only the third time the work has been realized before, after Kölnischer Kunstverein in Cologne (2000) and Biennale for Contemporary Art in Seville (2004). Erected in front of the Kunstmuseum Stuttgart, the work will present itself as usable sculpture from March 15 until May 20, 2012.
Michel Majerus at Kunstmuseum Stuttgart. Exhibition walk-through and interview with Dr. Ulrike Groos (Director, Kunstmuseum Stuttgart). Stuttgart / Germany, February 15, 2012.
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