Neo Rauch is a neo surrealist painter, whose paintings are characterized by their figurative imagery and dreamlike settings. His work is shaped by his personal and political history. They express social realism and themes of oppression under Communist East Germany. Cultural markers such as consumer products, propaganda posters, heroic monuments and village scenes, run throughout his paintings.
During the time, many artists struggled as artwork was to be officially sanctioned. Consequently, many of Rauch’s contemporaries, including Martin Kippenberger, Gerhard Richter, Anselm Kiefer and Sigmar Polke, fled to the West. Rauch remained in Leipzig, where his native country continued to define his work. Here, he mastered traditional painting techniques, and became one of the leading figurative painters of his generation.
Neo Rauch’s work shows us a world which no longer exists. The settings are familiar, yet dreamlike, as if they are made from fragments of memory and imagination. Whilst his paintings capture the popular culture of East Germany, their particular meanings remain uncertain. Rauch worked with oil on canvas, using understated colours. His work is simultaneously sombre and hopeful. Their dream like ambiguity allow the viewer to interpret them as any time, any place. Two of his most renowned works include Tal, 1999 and Marina, 2014. Tal, German for valley, features two male figures fighting each other with long sticks, it represents the government’s obsession with athleticism. Marina portrays an outstretched figure, part-siren and part-crucified Christ.
