Deutscher Eierknaller

The egg, the nucleus of so many forms of life, which harbours the most fascinating biological and physical processes within it, became a key motif in Martin Kippenberger's painting in the mid-1990s. In the centre of his large-format work ‘Deutscher Eierknaller’, a figure with a soldier's helmet rises out of an eggshell in garish shades of colour. The force of its green and blue tones, which extend into violet, is emphasised by a broad application of paint and heavy brushstrokes. The almost neon-grey areas of colour in the composition, which is permeated by several organic forms, are reminiscent of graffiti elements.
Martin Kippenberger, who was born in Dortmund in 1953 and died in Vienna in 1997, was one of the most influential artists of his generation and, alongside Werner Büttner, Gustav Kluge, Albert Oehlen and Bettina Semmer, was one of the so-called Neue Wilden in Hamburg. With his cross-genre work, which included sculptures and installations as well as paintings, he challenged established conventions in art and continues to confront viewers today with a critical view of society and the art world itself. Many of his works were self-portraits, autobiographically coloured and contextualised his role as an artist in society. Thus, the egg is not only a general motif but, according to the interpretation of essayist Manfred Hermes, a self-portrait of Kippenberger.