IMAGE DETAILS

Galerie Sophie Scheidecker

Anton Henning (Berlin, 1964)
Blumenstilleben n° 253 (AH 2004-196), 2004
Oil on canvas
220 x 189 cm

Anton Henning, born in Berlin in 1964, is a contemporary German artist whose work includes painting, sculpture, photography and installations. A self-taught artist, he trained largely through direct observation of ancient and modern art during his travels in the United States and Europe in the 1980s. Henning is distinguished by a bold approach that fuses a variety of styles and influences, from the old masters to modern movements. He appropriated classic artistic genres such as still life, portraiture and landscape. His style is recognisable for its complex compositions, bright colours and taste for geometric and organic motifs. An important figure in contemporary European art, Anton Henning has exhibited in renowned galleries and museums in Europe, notably in Germany, Switzerland and the Netherlands, and his works are included in major public and private collections.

In his series of paintings Blumenstilleben (Still Life of Flowers), Anton Henning explores the traditional theme of the floral still life with a singularly modern twist. Blumenstilleben No.253 (AH 2004-196), painted in 2004, is notable for its treatment of the floral motif with a palette of vibrant colours, interwoven with geometric motifs of exaggerated proportions, visible brushstrokes and juxtapositions of textures, giving it a particularly pop, modern feel.

With this series, Henning also seems to be questioning the relationship between academic painting and contemporary art. He does not hesitate to break with the solemnity of traditional still lifes by introducing elements reminiscent of modern design, abstraction and even the aesthetics of comics. Inspired by the aesthetic codes of the old masters, Henning revisits the subject of flower bouquets and floral compositions in a style that oscillates between the abstract and the figurative.