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Artists from A-Z Imi Knoebel

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  • Kinderstern (1989/2023)
    Kinderstern
    Artist: Imi Knoebel Dating: 1989/2023 Type: artObjectDetails.type.100023039 Material: acrylic on aluminium Measures: 40 x 43 cm Acces / purchase date: 2025 Inventory number: 1776
Knoebel studied at the Werkkunstschule in Darmstadt from 1962 to 1964 and then transferred to the Kunstakademie in Düsseldorf in 1964, fascinated by the teaching style and personality of Joseph Beuys. However, Knoebel distanced himself from the other Beuys students and developed his own minimalist style, influenced by his great predecessor Kasimir Malevich. After purist line drawings, light projections, and white pictures (1972–75), Knoebel turned to color for the first time in 1974. In the 1980s, the artist experimented with found objects and incorporated them into his installations. Continuing his engagement with the medium of painting, Knoebel also expanded his office to the architectural scale; in his largest commission to date, the artist designed several stained glass windows for the Cathedral of Notre-Dame de Reims (2011–2015). In 2021, Knoebel installed a permanent stained glass window entitled “Basel” in the Volkshaus Bar Basel, now “Imis”.



With the exhibition In the Stars... Imi Knoebel literally forces us to look up by hanging his works high up, allowing us to gaze symbolically into a firmament. Dozens of star-shaped works from the Kinderstern series (1988–2024) are distributed around the outer walls of the entire exhibition space, along with works from other series. Although the aluminum stars are all shaped the same, each of these 122 artworks has its own nuanced character. Some are radiant, shimmering, even glaring, while others are soft, gloomy, and rather cool. The hand-applied color is never the same for two stars from the entire group of works.

Imi Knoebel's children's stars are very special works of art, because three quarters of the sales revenue go to the Kinderstern e.V. association, founded by Carmen and Imi Knoebel, for children in need.

Von Bartha gallery, Basel