The first comprehensive retrospective for 50 years is dedicated to the Austrian painter.

Anton Kolig (1886-1950) was a contemporary of Gustav Klimt, Egon Schiele and Oskar Kokoschka, and one of the most important representatives of the Austrian avant-garde prior to 1914. The Leopold Museum owns over 20 paintings by Kolig and has gathered together a further 40 paintings and 50 works on paper for the exhibition. Kolig's work is diverse and includes portraits, still lifes and allegories as well as young male nudes and murals. At first, his works were characterized by a picturesque and dynamic expressionism that had its origins in the art of Paul Cézanne. In the 1920s and 1930s, he focused mainly on drawing and sculptural forms. In his later years, Kolig placed the power of colors at the center of his creative work.

Kolig studied with Kokoschka at the Kunstgewerbeschule (school of arts and crafts) in Vienna. From 1910, he was a member of the Neukunstgruppe (New Art Group) initiated by Egon Schiele. Works of Kolig's were destroyed by the Nazis during the Second World War. Many of his works remain missing to this day. The Leopold Museum has gathered together all the main works by Anton Kolig again after many years.

Anton Kolig. 22 September 2017 - 8 January 2018
www.leopoldmuseum.org