• Calliope | Jürgen Partenheimer

    Photo: Dirk Tacke
  • Calliope brings together eight vessels by Jürgen Partenheimer – some of which are being exhibited for the first time –...

    Calliope brings together eight vessels by Jürgen Partenheimer – some of which are being exhibited for the first time – which were created at Nymphenburg Porcelain Manufactory. Under the title Calliope, the muse of epic poetry, the artist developed three basic sculptural forms from which he explores the painterly and graphic possibilities on porcelain. The Online Viewing Room offers a digital extension to the analog presentation in the gallery and sheds light on the elaborate process of creating the hand-thrown unique pieces and on the role of ceramics in Jürgen Partenheimer's work.

     

    The abstract oeuvre of German artist Jürgen Partenheimer follows the contemporary interpretation of modernism, from which he consistently develops his own work. In various forms of artistic expression – painting, sculpture, works on paper, artists books and text - he combines minimalist formal vocabulary with lyrical content.

     

    Installation view, Calliope, max goelitz, Munich (2021) | Photo: Dirk Tacke

  • Studio view Porzellan Manufaktur Nymphenburg (2011)
    Photo: Jürgen Partenheimer
  • 'The vessels stand for themselves and define their own space' – Jürgen Partenheimer Studio view Porzellan Manufaktur Nymphenburg (2011) |...

    "The vessels stand for themselves and define their own space"

     

    – Jürgen Partenheimer

     

     

    Studio view Porzellan Manufaktur Nymphenburg (2011) | Photo: Jens Mauritz

  • Jürgen Partenheimer, Kalliope III, #4, 2012

    Jürgen Partenheimer

    Kalliope III, #4, 2012

     

    Porcelain painted in polychrome enamels, one of a kind, in cooperation with Porzellan Manufaktur Nymphenburg, Munich

     

    46 x 26 x 26 cm
    18 1/8 x 10 1/4 x 10 1/4 inches
     

     

    click for more info

  • For Calliope the artist chooses the form of the vessel, which he sees equally as a work of art and...

    For Calliope the artist chooses the form of the vessel, which he sees equally as a work of art and a social sculpture. Thus, the vessel in its painterly design becomes the object of repeated transformation of sensation and perception. Like Picasso, Lucio Fontana, Cy Twombly or Franz West, Partenheimer explores the nature of the material and overcomes the traditional separation of art and craft by uniting sculpture and painting with the medium of ceramics.

     

    Studio view Porzellan Manufaktur Nymphenburg, Munich (2011) | Photo: Jens Mauritz

  • 'Much as in the Far Eastern tradition, Partenheimer's work in clay consistently adheres to the aesthetic, artistic criteria he applies...

    "Much as in the Far Eastern tradition, Partenheimer's work in clay consistently adheres to the aesthetic, artistic criteria he applies to his work in general. The distinction between the practical and the beautiful is always purely arbitrary and a product of cultural factors. Only the synergy of both dimensions enables the created vessel to achieve individuality and perfection."

     

    – Christian Ganzenberg, curator and author

     

    Installation view, Calliope, max goelitz, Munich (2021) | Photo: Dirk Tacke

  • Jürgen Partenheimer, Kalliope I, AP 1, 2012

    Jürgen Partenheimer

    Kalliope I, AP 1, 2012
    Porcelain painted in polychrome enamels, one of a kind, in cooperation with Porzellan Manufaktur Nymphenburg, Munich
    45.5 x 25 x 25 cm
    17 7/8 x 9 7/8 x 9 7/8 inches
     
    click for more info
  • Studio view Porzellan Manufaktur Nymphenburg (2011)
    Photo: Jürgen Partenheimer
  • Based on sketches, Partenheimer developed three types of forms that can be traced back to basic geometric elements. The selected... Based on sketches, Partenheimer developed three types of forms that can be traced back to basic geometric elements. The selected... Based on sketches, Partenheimer developed three types of forms that can be traced back to basic geometric elements. The selected... Based on sketches, Partenheimer developed three types of forms that can be traced back to basic geometric elements. The selected...

    Based on sketches, Partenheimer developed three types of forms that can be traced back to basic geometric elements. The selected forms were hand-thrown, a special process compared to the traditionally used practice of casting molds at Nymphenburg. The shaping hand reveals the rhythm of the thrown material, which undergoes various transformations through several stages - humidity, drying, glazing and firing. Not every vessel withstands these processes, hence Calliope's sculptural shapes are the result of an elaborate, creative process.

     

    Calliope I-III, sketches on paper | Photo: Jürgen Partenheimer

  • 'Consciously the resulting shape exposes itself to the untamed beauty of those transformations that melt, move, compact and harden porcelain....

    "Consciously the resulting shape exposes itself to the untamed beauty of those transformations that melt, move, compact and harden porcelain. Thus, the thrown form preserves its inner agitation, it breathes the rhythm of the image that made it grow and places faith in the drawing that is invested in it as its blueprint like an open musical score."

     

    – Bruno Glatt, Calliope's Dream (2015)

     

     

    Studio view Porzellan Manufaktur Nymphenburg (2011) | Photo: Jürgen Partenheimer

  • Jürgen Partenheimer, Kalliope III, #6, 2011

    Jürgen Partenheimer

    Kalliope III, #6, 2011
    Porcelain painted in polychrome enamels, one of a kind, in cooperation with Porzellan Manufaktur Nymphenburg, Munich
    46 x 27 x 27 cm
    18 1/8 x 10 5/8 x 10 5/8 inches
  • Museum of Anthropology Vancouver (2014)
    Photo: Jürgen Partenheimer
  • 'That space between the poles of the 'eternally same' and the 'ever new' is also Calliope's. The twenty-one vessels are... 'That space between the poles of the 'eternally same' and the 'ever new' is also Calliope's. The twenty-one vessels are... 'That space between the poles of the 'eternally same' and the 'ever new' is also Calliope's. The twenty-one vessels are...

    "That space between the poles of the 'eternally same' and the 'ever new' is also Calliope's. The twenty-one vessels are a musical set of seven variations on three themes. Together they form a polyphonic entity whose parts, 'like the various stages of a voyage', lead 'into the interior of a theme, the interior of a thought, the interior of a single, unique situation the understanding of which recedes into boundless distance'."

     

    – Christian Ganzenberg, curator and author

     

     

    Installation view, The Archive, Pinakothek der Moderne, Munich (2014) | Photo: Nicole Wilhelms

  • 'Jürgen Partenheimer has become passionately and enthusiastically involved in the complex and demanding world of ceramics. He has fallen under...

    "Jürgen Partenheimer has become passionately and enthusiastically involved in the complex and demanding world of ceramics. He has fallen under the spell of the medium, tested its limits and heard its call. Calliope, through its rigor and fantasy, its accuracy and coherence, makes a significant contribution to contemporary ceramic creation."

     

    – Anne Clair Schumacher, curator, Musée Ariana, Geneva

     

     

    Installation view, The Archive, Gemeentemuseum Den Haag (2014) | Photo: Alice de Groot

  • Jürgen Partenheimer, Kalliope I, #6, 2012

    Jürgen Partenheimer

    Kalliope I, #6, 2012
    Porcelain painted in polychrome enamels, one of a kind, in cooperation with Porzellan Manufaktur Nymphenburg, Munich
    45.5 x 25 x 25 cm
    17 7/8 x 9 7/8 x 9 7/8 inches
     
    click for more info
  • 'Jürgen Partenheimer has renounced the traditional functional relationship between model and sculpture, foregone the final step to what might be...

    "Jürgen Partenheimer has renounced the traditional functional relationship between model and sculpture, foregone the final step to what might be presumed as completion or perfection and made free variation the actual goal."

     

    – Iris Benner, curator, Museum am Ostwall, Dortmund

     

     

    Studio view Porzellan Manufaktur Nymphenburg | Photo: Jens Mauritz

  • Photo: Dirk Tacke
  • Jürgen Partenheimer, Kalliope II, #1, 2011

    Jürgen Partenheimer

    Kalliope II, #1, 2011
    Porcelain painted in polychrome enamels, one of a kind, in cooperation with Porzellan Manufaktur Nymphenburg, Munich
    33 x 33 x 33 cm
    13 x 13 x 13 inches
     
    click for more info
  • 'The rhythm of color which determines the chromatic tonal harmony of an image on porcelain does not result in independent...

    "The rhythm of color which determines the chromatic tonal harmony of an image on porcelain does not result in independent creative decisions but is dependent upon the thermal requirements set for each chosen pigment. Thus, the desired color resonance can only rely on imagination and bows to an incalculable risk."

     

    – Jürgen Partenheimer

     

     

    Studio view Porzellanmanufaktur Nymphenburg (2011) | Photo: Jürgen Partenheimer

  • 'By virtue of having been painted both on the inside and the outside, one can logically infer that one cannot... 'By virtue of having been painted both on the inside and the outside, one can logically infer that one cannot...

    "By virtue of having been painted both on the inside and the outside, one can logically infer that one cannot exist without the other, prompting reflection upon the very media used, something that a painting on the wall normally doesn’t provoke.”


    – Werner Schnell, art historian and author (2014)

     


    Studio view Porzellan Manufaktur Nymphenburg | Photo: Jens Mauritz

  • Jürgen Partenheimer

    Photo: Benedikt Partenheimer
  • Born in Munich in 1947, Jürgen Partenheimer studied art history, philosophy and visual art in Germany, the USA, Mexico and...

    Born in Munich in 1947, Jürgen Partenheimer studied art history, philosophy and visual art in Germany, the USA, Mexico and France. As a representative of a subjective abstraction, he is considered one of the most notable contemporary artists in Germany. With theory, poetry and prose as his referential grammar for artistic expression, Partenheimer's work encompasses painting, drawing, sculpture, artists books and text.

    He became internationally renowned following his participation in the Paris, Venice and São Paulo biennials. Solo exhibitions of the artist's work have been held by the National Gallery Berlin (1988), the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam (1997), National Museum of Fine Art, Beijing (2001), the CGAC in Santiago de Compostela (1999 and 2004), the S.M.A.K. in Ghent (2002), the Pinacoteca do Estado in São Paulo (2004), the Ikon Gallery in Birmingham and the Kunstmuseum Bonn (both 2008), most recently the Pinakothek der Moderne in Munich, the Gemeente Museum Den Haag, The Falckenberg Collection-Deichtorhallen, Hamburg, the Contemporary Art Gallery, Vancouver (all 2014) and the Musée Ariana, Geneva (2016).

     

    → to the artist page

  • available works

    Photo: Dirk Tacke