Jochen Mühlenbrink. Fog it All

The creation of this series is closely linked to a period of upheaval. A close bereavement and an accident in his studio, in which he literally fell into his own reflection and suffered a deep cut to his face, pushed him to his existential limits. “In addition to pain and despair, I was afraid of being scarred forever,” he recalls.

At the same time, he created new Window Paintings. Landscapes or cities seem to be behind fogged glass, on which smileys, skulls, etc. have been drawn with a finger. Unlike the figures in the exhibition, which are created exclusively in oil, the background of these Window Paintings is applied with acrylic paint, mainly sprayed on.

In terms of content, individual works in the figurative group refer directly to Caravaggio – for example, to “The Incredulity of Saint Thomas” or “Madonna di Loreto.” Central remains the doubt about the visible and the desire to touch paintings. “To paint a work that one absolutely has to touch, but, as we all know, is not allowed to – a visualization of human longing,” says Jochen Mühlenbrink.

“Fog it All” is his most radical condensation to date: between closeness and distance, cheerfulness and abyss, visibility and extinction. “My works arise from doubt, hope, and longing—and they remain because they disappear,” summarizes Jochen Mühlenbrink.