Review > Nothing Against Everything
Anniversary exhibition for Arnulf Rainer's 95th birthdayArnulf Rainer: Nothing Against Everything
Anniversary exhibition for the artist's 95th birthdayThe Arnulf Rainer Museum honored the 95th birthday of Arnulf Rainer, the world-renowned pioneer of Art Informel, with the anniversary exhibition: Arnulf Rainer. Nothing Against Everything.
The focus was on Rainer's early works and his iconic cross overpaintings. As early as the 1950s, Rainer began to transcend representational painting and make a name for himself through blind drawings and atomizations. Later, overpaintings became his trademark. The monumental cross overpaintings, in particular, are among the highlights of his work; they embody the profound dualism of creation and destruction, fullness and emptiness.
With this exhibition, the Arnulf Rainer Museum presented for the first time a portion of the outstanding Zambo Collection, which was acquired by the Lower Austrian State Collections in 2024. The internationally renowned art collector Helmut Zambo accompanied Arnulf Rainer through all his creative periods and, over decades, built the world's most important Rainer collection.
Duration: 23.11.2024–05.10.2025
Curators: Nikolaus Kratzer, Helmut Zambo
Exhibition catalogue
Arnulf Rainer. The Nothing Against Everything: An anniversary volume celebrating Arnulf Rainer's 95th birthday.
This catalog highlights 95 of the artist's works. All of the works come from the Zambo Collection. They are divided into nine groups with short introductory texts: Surrealist Phase, Blind Drawings (Centralizations, Vertical Arrangements, Atomizations), Overpaintings, Rauscharbeiten, Crosses & Death Masks, Finger Painting, Neo-Fantasy, Face Farces & Body Poses, and Veil Paintings.
The illustrated section is preceded by a detailed art-historical essay by Nikolaus Kratzer on Rainer's oeuvre. The exhibition catalog is illustrated with examples of poster designs, invitation cards, and exhibition views from the Zambo Archive.