The Collectors' Edge

In this episode from Nordic Art Partners, discover the work and career of Ron Gorchov, an enigmatic figure who pioneered major innovations in painterly abstraction in the late 1960s. We recount his early biography, beginning in the 1950s; a classic rites of passage story of a bohemian artist in post-war New York, a city teeming with life and a magnet for artists who flocked in droves to the tenement apartments of downtown looking to make their mark on the most fertile time and place of the mid-twentieth century. Following a conventional artistic education in Chicago, mentored by John Graham, Mark Rothko and other luminaries of the downtown scene, Gorchov quickly made his mark in his adopted city, garnering early success and some measure of acclaim with his early works, related to both Surrealism and Abstraction and aesthetically linked to many of the Abstract Expressionists of the New York School. Balancing roles as a lifeguard and swimming instructor, his relentless dedication helped him overcome financial struggles and carve out the beginnings of a promising career as a professional artist. After a decade of development and consistent exposure, the late 1960s bore witness to his greatest achievement, the development of a uniquely shaped canvas. Both convex and concave at the same time, and resembling a shield or saddle, this revolution of the painted object/surface was to innovate a unique painting/sculptural hybrid and forever became his defining legacy. His career would attain new heights and his achievements would be widely celebrated, before the despondency of dwindling interest and relative obscurity, a difficult time which would endure for the best part of two decades. The early years of the C21st would bring a renaissance. Learn how in later life his singular achievements were again celebrated and finding new audiences. Through the advocacy and support of Vito Schnabel, as well as from several other key prestigious international galleries in important global markets, Gorchov’s work would find its way back to public consciousness and provide a heartening vindication for the now elderly painter.  Now deceased, Gorchov’s work is beginning to find its place as a seminal achievement of experimental painting. His work is known far and wide, celebrated by collectors and institutions alike and supported by an ever-deepening market, these special paintings are instantly recognisable by their unique forms.  Get in Touch [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/2369500/open_sms]

From the inception of his art career in 1968, Knoebel's work has been consistently driven by a quest to pare painting (and art generally) back to its absolute essentials. From an interest in readily available, humble materials to the manner in which colours can relate to other colours to create works of meditative intensity, his is an art that has always tried to distil and simplify, rather than become more complex.  Our art expert, Nicholas Robinson, and your host Jeppe Curth guide us through Knoebel's life and career, from his family's dramatic exodus from post-war Communist East Germany to the West, to his education at the Werkundschule in Darmstadt where he learned from the legendary 'preliminary class' formulated by Mohly-Nagy at the Bauhaus some 40 years earlier, to his final studies at the legendary Kunstakademie in Dusseldorf.  Learn how his art production has retained remarkable consistency, from his very first major work, 1968's Raum 19, made under the mentorship of Joseph Beuys, to today's serial bodies of work that occupy themselves with the very same concerns of material, line, form and colour. Knoebel has influenced several generations of artists in the manner he has developed (and lived up to) these highly personal and literal notions of 'minimalism'. Now one of the senior statesmen amongst the art world's non-objective practitioners, his sheer artistic integrity and consistency enables us to trace his lineage all the way back to the founding antecedents of Mandarin and Malevich. Further details of this episode focus on how his work has both captivated the art market and cemented his place in art history. We explore the history and trajectory of his place in today's behemoth art market, sampling a large data set to make a case for an altogether different kind of consistency: that of market value and growth over a sustained period of time. Once again, The Collector's Edge enables listeners to gain insights into Knoebel's enduring legacy and the market dynamics that continue to elevate the significance of his contributions to 20th-century abstract art. Episode Artwork: Imi Knoebel, Anima Mundi 31-5, 2023, Acrylic on Aluminum,  In 5 parts (Each: 37 x 29 x 5.8cm), (Detail). Image courtesy, Nordic Art Partners, ©Imi Knoebel  Get in Touch [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/2369500/open_sms]

In this episode of The Collectors’ Edge we discuss the work and career of Austrian painter Martha Jungwirth. Join us in this insightful episode to learn how her dynamic and textured paintings have earned her widespread acclaim, relatively late in life. Hosted, as always, by Nordic Art Partners' Jeppe Curth and Nicholas Robinson, we take you on a journey through Jungwirth’s evolution—from her early days in Vienna at the Academy of Applied Arts, the prestigious prize wins as a student that signalled her early promise, to her present day career which includes significant critial and commercial success and full retrospective survey shows at leading international museums. We investigate the formative influences of the art world of the 1970s and the prevailing trends that formed the contextual backdrop of her early working life. Discover her painting methodologies, her unique approach to exploring colour, her oscillation between abstraction and figuration and why her innovative use of heavy paper and has become a signature element of her work. As always, we take a closer look at Jungwirth’s standing and reputation and how this is reflected by the global art market of today. It is clear that her works are becoming increasingly coveted by collectors and museums alike but what trends are driving her market, and what might be coming next for this pioneering artist? With her work commanding significant attention at major exhibitions and auctions, we’ll discuss the growing demand for her expressive, textured paintings and why Martha Jungwirth is a name every serious art collector should be watching. Get in Touch [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/2369500/open_sms]

In the lastest episode of The Collectors’ Edge from Nordic Art Partners we discuss the life, work and career of Friedrich Kunath, a celebrated German artist now based in Los Angeles. From his early experiences in pre-unification, Communist East Germany to the pinnacle of today’s art world, we discuss what makes Kunath’s work distinctive and unique and just why it has an incredible breadth of appeal to a wide range of tastes and geographic markets.  A departure from the category of artists we often explore, Kunath is not a historic artist deserving of a reappraisal by the market, but a fully established mid-career artist following a stable but consistently improving trajectory. We learn about his formative influences under the tuition of Walter Dahn at Braunschweig University in the early 90s, his forays into the underground nightlife scene of turn of the millenium Berlin and, eventually, his full commitment to the life of an artist. Known for his ability to synthesise a wide range of visual and cutural influences, from the highest levels of classical landscape painting to the simplest and most common manifestations of pop culture, we discuss in detail the characteristics of Kunath’s paintings, the themes he explores and the unique blend of painterly skill and lyrical humour he applies to them. Distinguished by powerful feelings of wistful yearning, nostalgia and self-deprecating wit, we look into the ways Kunath’s cultural anthroplogy embraces both melancholia and euphoria and, in doing so, encompasses the full register of the human experience. As an artist who has honed and refined his craft to incredible levels of technical excellence, we discuss the current market status it has brought him and the highly credible galleries around the world that support, sustain and manage so well this position he has achieved both within the industry and wider cultural landscape. But what comes next for Kunath? After twenty years of evolution and improvement—of steadily building his body of work, his reputation and the insitutional regard for his work, is there to be a next step? We speculate as to what his career might need now, and the implications it may have for his pricing, value and place within a wider market context. Prepare to be captivated by one of the most compelling and poetic visual universes in today’s contemporary art scene and informed as to why collecting his work could be among the shrewdest acquisition choices any art buyer could make.  Episode Artwork: Friedrich Kunath, We We Will Be Modern Until We Die, 2023, Oil on canvas, 90 x 120cm (Detail), Image courtesy Travesio Cuatro, Madrid, © Friedrich Kunath Get in Touch [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/2369500/open_sms]

Not all stars of the art world are overnight sensations. Join us on The Collector's Edge as we explore the extraordinary perseverance and journey of Katherine Bradford, an artist who embraced her true vocation somewhat later in life than many, but has gone on to achieve acclaim and recognition for her unique painterly vision. Learn about her formative years, her bold move to New York City in 1980, and the powerful themes of liberation and emancipation that define her work. From her early abstract pieces to her poignant depictions of swimmers and superheroes, Bradford's evolution as an artist is as compelling as it is inspiring. We discuss the methodologies of Bradford's paintings and their captivating qualities, highlighting her masterful balance of composition, light, and glazing techniques. Understand her place within the contemporary art market and learn how her works offer remarkable value for their quality and maturity. We delve into the recognition she's received, including a Guggenheim Fellowship and a Joan Mitchell Foundation Grant, her extensive teaching legacy and her significant public art commissions, such as the murals at New York City's First Avenue Subway Station. We also offer insights into how you can research her practice and learn more through widely available content online. Tune in to learn how Katherine Bradford's inspiring journey from struggle to recognition has created an artist fully confident and in charge of her process and one who consequently appreciates the successful and highly respected career that has resulted from these attributes. Get in Touch [https://www.buzzsprout.com/twilio/text_messages/2369500/open_sms]