Franz Gertsch. Blow-Up

Following its successful run at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art (DK) and the Deichtorhallen Hamburg (D), the major exhibition Blow-Up has now arrived in Switzerland, presented at the Kunstmuseum Bern and the Museum Franz Gertsch in Burgdorf. To mark this occasion, the comprehensive and richly illustrated catalogue of the work of Franz Gertsch (1930-2022) is being released in both German and French editions. The volume explores Gertsch's radical redefinition of Realism, from the legendary 'Medici' to his meditative late paintings. It focuses on his signature 'blow-up' method: the monumental enlargement of photographs, which Gertsch meticulously transferred onto canvas or wood through months of exacting labor. Featuring a comprehensive list of works, a conversation with Hans Ulrich Obrist, and essays by esteemed authors including Tobia Bezzola, Kathleen Bühler, Florian Illies, Dora Imhof, and Ulrich Loock, this is an authoritative monograph on one of the most significant Swiss artists of our time.

Swiss artist Franz Gertsch (1930-2022) achieved international acclaim in 1972 with his monumental painting »Medici« at documenta 5. A pioneering figure of Photorealism and a master of the contemporary woodcut, his oeuvre is defined by extraordinary technical perfection and the transformation of photography into large-scale painting and graphic art.