Albert Oehlen
An Old Painting in Spirit
Opening: Friday, May 29, 2015
In 1987, two years after its foundation, Kunsthalle Zürich presented the exhibition Abräumung by Albert Oehlen (*1954), an early and important solo show for the German artist. Oehlen, who lives not far from Zurich in the Eastern part of Switzerland, remains among the most innovative and controversially discussed artists of today. Quarter of a century later the exhibition An Old Painting in Spirit revisits the 1980s with a selection of works from that era, complemented with new, never-before shown paintings. The exhibition proves how Oehlen’s art continues to challenge our expectations of painting, and moreover, of beauty.

Albert Oehlen
Raum, 1984
Öl, Lack und Spiegel auf Leinwand / Oil, varnish and mirror on canvas 260 x 260 cm
© Photo: Stefan Rohner

Installation view: Albert Oehlen «An Old Painting in Spirit», Kunsthalle Zürich 2015
©Photo: Stefan Rohner

Installation view: Albert Oehlen «An Old Painting in Spirit», Kunsthalle Zürich 2015
©Photo: Stefan Rohner

Installation view: Albert Oehlen «An Old Painting in Spirit», Kunsthalle Zürich 2015
© Photo: Stefan Rohner

Installation view: Albert Oehlen «An Old Painting in Spirit», Kunsthalle Zürich 2015
©Photo: Stefan Rohner

Installation view: Albert Oehlen «An Old Painting in Spirit», Kunsthalle Zürich 2015
©Photo: Stefan Rohner

Concert Wertmüller-Pliakas-Wittwer, May 29, 2015, Kunsthalle Zürich
©Photo: Stefan Rohner

Installation view: Albert Oehlen «An Old Painting in Spirit», Kunsthalle Zürich 2015
©Photo: Stefan Rohner

Installation view: Albert Oehlen «An Old Painting in Spirit», Kunsthalle Zürich 2015
©Photo: Stefan Rohner

Installation view: Albert Oehlen «An Old Painting in Spirit», Kunsthalle Zürich 2015
©Photo: Stefan Rohner

Installation view: Albert Oehlen «An Old Painting in Spirit», Kunsthalle Zürich 2015
©Photo: Stefan Rohner

Installation view: Albert Oehlen «An Old Painting in Spirit», Kunsthalle Zürich 2015
©Photo: Stefan Rohner

Installation view: Albert Oehlen «An Old Painting in Spirit», Kunsthalle Zürich 2015
©Photo: Stefan Rohner

Installation view: Albert Oehlen «An Old Painting in Spirit», Kunsthalle Zürich 2015
©Photo: Stefan Rohner

Installation view: Albert Oehlen «An Old Painting in Spirit», Kunsthalle Zürich 2015
©Photo: Stefan Rohner

Installation view: Albert Oehlen «An Old Painting in Spirit», Kunsthalle Zürich 2015
©Photo: Stefan Rohner

Installation view: Albert Oehlen «An Old Painting in Spirit», Kunsthalle Zürich 2015
©Photo: Stefan Rohner