Günther Uecker

(Wendorf 1930 - 2025 Düsseldorf)
1949 – 1953 Studied painting in Wismar and at the Art Academy in Berlin-Weißensee
1955 – 1957 Studied at the Düsseldorf Art Academy with Otto Pankok
Günther Uecker lives and works in Düsseldorf-Oberkassel and St. Gallen.

Günther Uecker joined the artist group ZERO in 1961. The group had been founded by Heinz Mack and Otto Piene. ZERO stands for "the zero hour". It was felt that art was too overloaded and needed to be liberated, a new beginning. The group saw their art as a transition, a moment between two states. Together they realised fascinating light-kinetic objects and thus found new ways of representation. The controversial performance of the so-called "Terrororchester" at the Kunsthalle Basel also took place in this context. Günther Uecker staged a noise machine with more than 20 loud machines such as hoovers.

Günther Uecker succeeded in realising the aims of the ZERO group and enriching art with new impulses. He worked with unusual materials to which he lent a surprising effect: it would have been obvious, for example, to use nails for the divisive or destructive processes of an aggressive art style. Instead, Günther Uecker created fascinating surfaces from building accessories, some of which unfold a meditative aura and invite the viewer to change their perspective.

The spirituality of many of Günther Uecker's works has been strongly influenced by Zen Buddhism since the 1980s. Having travelled extensively in the Far East, he developed an empathy for Zen, a Japanese form of Buddhism. His stays in Peru, Tibet and Japanese Zen gardens had a particularly strong influence on his work. He developed the idea of mobility, which is at the same time immobility. Through his rotations, spirals and sandmills, the artist refers to the constantly renewing and changing beauty of nature and its appearance. The eternal transformation of his moving sculptures becomes synonymous with nature. His works also reflect the focus on the centre, the liberation from oneself, which is achieved through meditation. For Uecker, the motif of the spiral has an important symbolic power in connection with the Zen tradition. The spiral, in its even, calm force, which leads both inwards and outwards, thus takes up the basic idea that external influences characterise us just as much as internal ones. The spiral thus symbolises the freedom of consciousness. The artist repeatedly refers to this philosophy of life and the motif in his overall work. In addition to his nail pictures and embossed prints, Uecker creates elaborate kinetic objects that rotate with the help of motors. The spiral motif also plays an important role here. Large round plates with spirals of nails move in a circle and begin to play with the light reflected on the nails - the rotation is born. The moving nail relief evokes in the viewer a series of different images which, according to Uecker, has spiritual potential. The even rotation of the spiral thus becomes a spiritual practice. Günther Uecker alternates between "spiral" and "rotation" in the titles of his embossed prints, as he was inspired either by his nail pictures or his kinetic objects. The terms "spiral" and "rotation" therefore do not differ in motif, but originate from different genres of the artist's work, which nevertheless refer to the same philosophy.

After his presence at the Venice Biennale in 1970, he devoted himself increasingly to inspiring journeys that took him to Japan, Siberia and Iceland, among other places. From the 1980s onwards, Uecker increasingly focussed on political themes. The "Ash Pictures" cycle, which deals with the nuclear disaster in Chernobyl, is internationally significant. The avowed pacifist envisioned a place of tolerance when he designed the prayer room of the Reichstag building in Berlin in 1999. Numerous honours, including the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany with Star, illustrate Uecker's relevance to modern art history. He himself is committed to helping young artists realise their innovative ideas.

In 2008, Uecker founded the "Zero foundation" together with the ZERO artists Heinz Mack and Otto Pinie. The Museum Kunstpalast Foundation and the state capital Düsseldorf are also involved in the "Zero foundation". The foundation is based in Düsseldorf. One of its aims is to preserve and promote the ZERO movement.

Günther Uecker
Kathedrale

Günther Uecker
Optische Partitur "Mozart"

Günther Uecker
Strömung I

Günther Uecker
Pyramide

Günther Uecker
Feld

Günther Uecker
Verbindungen-Verletzungen

Günther Uecker
Graphein, Blatt 2 - Shang Dynastie, China, 1716 bis 1112 v. Chr

Günther Uecker
Graphein, Blatt 3 - Ahirom König von Byblos, Byblos Phönizisch, 13. Jahrhundert v. Chr

Günther Uecker
Graphein, Blatt 4 - Enkomi, Zypern, 1200 v. Chr

Günther Uecker
Graphein, Blatt 7 - Die Reise von Kadmos, Codex sinaiticus, 4. Jahrhundert

Günther Uecker
Geschriebene Bilder II

Günther Uecker
Geschriebene Bilder III

Günther Uecker
Geschriebene Bilder VI