Paul Wunderlich

Paul Wunderlich (Eberswalde, 1927 – Saint-Pierre-de-Vassols, 2010) was a painter, sculptor and above all a protagonist of German graphics of the second half of the twentieth century. His images, often crossed by female figures, elongated anatomies, enigmatic objects and references to mythology, belong to a universe in which technical precision and fantastic imagination mutually support each other. Reality appears recognisable, but is transformed by impossible proportions, unexpected juxtapositions and suspended atmospheres.

Hamburg and the discovery of graphics

After the war Wunderlich studied at the art school in Hamburg, studying drawing, engraving and lithography. Already in 1951 he received a teaching position at the Hochschule für Bildende Künste, where he taught graphic techniques and also worked as a printer. Collaboration in the creation of editions for artists such as Oskar Kokoschka and Emil Nolde allows him to develop direct knowledge of matrices and printing processes.

This experience is essential to understanding his work. Wunderlich does not consider graphics a simple means of reproducing a painting: he explores its specific possibilities, from the quality of the sign to the tonal nuances. The technical procedure becomes part of the language and allows it to achieve a particular formal clarity, even when the subject takes on unreal characteristics.

The relationship with the printing laboratory also offers him a particular way of thinking about drawing. In lithography the sign must deal with a sequence of operations and with the characteristics of the matrix; the apparent spontaneity of the image therefore depends on rigorous technical control. Wunderlich learns to exploit this discipline to obtain delicate passages and very clear outlines. Virtuosity is not just a demonstration of skill: it contributes to the effect of estrangement, because it makes anatomies and objects credible that could not exist in reality. The observer recognizes a smooth surface or a familiar figure, but immediately notices its alteration. It is in this gap between precision and impossibility that an essential part of his poetics is formed.

The figure between Surrealism and fantastic realism

After an initial phase influenced by gestural and informal research, the artist moves towards a more defined figuration. The human body, especially the female one, becomes one of his central themes. The figures may appear elongated, fragmented or placed next to objects with an ambiguous meaning; eroticism coexists with references to art history, literature and myth.

The affinity with Surrealism and fantastic realism does not imply a simple revival of their formulas. Wunderlich constructs carefully controlled images, in which the strangeness often arises from a minimal variation in proportion or from an impossible relationship between realistic elements. In 1960, some of his graphic works were seized in Hamburg on charges of obscenity, an episode that testifies to the tensions between his research and the moral climate of the time.

His figures do not belong to a linear story. They often appear isolated, like characters suspended in a time without coordinates, or are associated with elements that change their meaning. The legacy of classical myth and the European figurative tradition coexists with a modern sensitivity to desire, metamorphosis and the ambiguous character of the image. The female body recurs insistently, but is not always treated as an individual portrait: it can become a symbolic construction, subjected to twists and transformations. The smooth beauty of the surfaces thus produces a tension with the fragility or restlessness suggested by the shapes. The episode of the seizure of the prints in 1960 must also be read in the context of post-war cultural conflicts, when the representation of the body could still provoke particularly strong censorial reactions.

Paris, lithography and sculpture

Between 1960 and 1963 he stayed in Paris, further studying lithography at specialized laboratories, including that of Desjobert. Upon his return to Germany he obtained a professorship of graphics and painting in Hamburg, which he left in 1968 to dedicate himself fully to his own research. In the meantime he expanded his activity to sculpture and objects, transferring the same elegant and fantastic anatomies of works on paper into three-dimensional space.

The artistic collaboration with the photographer Karin Székessy contributes to enriching her repertoire of figures and poses. The photograph can constitute a starting point, but it is reworked until it loses the character of a simple document. The body becomes a mental image, subjected to transformations that combine classical beauty and modern restlessness.

The transition to sculpture makes clear how much his imagination is linked to the transformation of proportions. A figure that lives on paper thanks to chiaroscuro can become a volume, taking on new relationships with weight, light and point of view. Here too Wunderlich maintains a graphic quality: profiles and lines continue to guide perception. Collaboration with photography does not erase this autonomy, because the starting image is reinterpreted through a process of selection and invention. For graphic works, comparing different copies of a print run can help observe the quality of the impression, conservation of the paper and integrity of the margins. It is also useful to distinguish an original signed lithograph from a poster, an editorial reproduction or a later print. His contribution shows that a traditional technique can become a tool for contemporary experimentation, without losing artisanal precision.

Original prints and collecting

Wunderlich is particularly appreciated for his lithographs, often created with notable refinement of tonal transitions and chromatic superimpositions. In lithography the image arises from a planographic matrix, traditionally based on the repulsion between water and fatty substances. Etching, on the other hand, uses a chemically engraved metal matrix: the two processes should not be confused, just as an original print does not coincide with an offset reproduction.

To identify an example, the signature, print run, publisher, dimensions and references to the graphics catalogs are important. His artistic legacy lies in having shown how technical virtuosity can become a tool of the imagination, giving shape to elegant, disturbing and immediately recognizable images.