Bacht was born in Remscheid and attended the Burg-Gymnasium, the Carl-Humann-Gymnasium and the Folkwang School for Fine Art in Essen, where from the age of sixteen he studied figurative and nude drawing under the tutelage of Jo Pieper. From 1969 to 1971, upon his recognition as a conscientious objector, he studied art history with Günter Bandmann and philosophy with Ernst Bloch and Dieter Jähnig at the University of Tübingen. A decisive influence at that time was also the close friendship with Karl Ameriks, an expert of German idealism.
In 1972, Bacht continued his studies at the University of Heidelberg. His main interests there were European as well as East Asian fine art and architecture, and his key academic teachers were Peter Anselm Riedl and Dietrich Seckel. His formative encounter with Fritz Wotruba, whose work he cataloged as a doctoral student, also occurred during this period and incited him to pursue studies in fine art at the University of Mainz from 1974 to 1979.
In 1973, Bacht married the judge Brigitte Holzinger from Freiburg, with whom he raised five children.
Since 1979, Bacht has been working as a freelance fine artist with studios in Heidelberg, the former cigar factory Malsch (1987–1990) and, after a conversion that took one year to complete, in the former catholic village church of Epfenbach.
Work
Bacht's aim as an artist is the visualisation of dialectical processes between artistic material and aesthetic design principles that always unfold as respectful mimesis of cyclic laws of nature. „The wave“, writes Hans Gercke, „fascinates him in its polarity of height and depth, light and shade, concave and convex movement, serenity and dynamic“. Such elementary experiences, the rhythm that all organic life depends on, the pulse of our bloodstream, the tides, day and night, the seasons, the law of tension and release, are objectified in all work groups and lend aesthetic unity to Bacht's work.
Early work groups, developed from 1975 to 1985, are the embossed prints, followed from 1985 to 1990 by anode pictures. In the late 1980s and 1990s, Bacht created major works like „Shrine for a Stone“ with several variations, the series of book objects, earth circles and makimono pictures as well as his first large-scale floor installations. In 1995, Bacht introduced light as a design instrument. From 2000, a series of critical homages to key figures of classical modernism (Mondrian, Malewitsch) and the White Installations were added to the canon of work groups. Another work group is dedicated to objects and architectonic structures for an alternative sepulchral culture.
All work groups are flanked by an encyclopaedia of satirical objects, assembled under the group title „Kein Wunder“.
Solo exhibitions
1980 Galerie der Stadt Mainz, Bilder, Objekte, Graphik
1984 Werkstattgalerie Heidelberg, Arbeiten von M.Bacht und G.Kilger
1987 Galerie Friebe, Mannheim, Objekte und Bilder
1988 Galerie Arterie, Wiesenbach, Arbeiten von 1978–1988 (Kat.)
1990 Galerie Friebe, Mannheim, Erinnerung an Makimono (Kat.)
1990 Kunstverein Rastatt, Im Kreis (Kat.)
1991 Folkwang Museum, Essen, Metamorphose (Kat.)
1991 Landesmuseum Mainz, Michael Bacht (KULTURZEIT ET ZETERA)
1992 Galerie Hilbur, Karlsruhe, Objekte und Bilder
1993 Galerie Friebe, Mannheim, Kein Wunder, Satirische Objekte
1994 Galerie Beatrice Wassermann, Köln, Klang der Stille, Objekte und Bilder
Hans Gercke, Zu den Arbeiten von Michael Bacht. Katalog, Heidelberg 1986
Werner Simon Vogler, Michael Bacht in der Galerie Karin Friebe Mannheim. SWF II, 25. März 1987
Regina Birmele, Poesie des Paradoxen. Mannheimer Morgen, 1. April 1987
Rolf Nägele, Erste Annäherung. Katalog, Wiesenbach 1988
Hans Gercke, Atelierbesuch bei Michael Bacht. Passagen, 4/1989
Roland Geiger, Ein Ozean voller Möglichkeiten. RNZ, 10. November 1989
Klaus H. Auler, Das neue Atelier des Bildhauers Michael Bacht. SDR II, 23. Dezember 1989
Karoline Hille, Schöpfungsmythos und Endzeitvision. RNZ, 29. März 1990
Christel Heybrock, Verborgene Energien. Mannheimer Morgen, 5. April 1990
Hans Gercke, Das Prinzip des Polaren. Katalog, Mannheim 1990
Wolfgang Hartmann, Im Kreis. Kunstverein Rastatt, Rastatt 1990
Kirsten Voigt, Eine ernste Sicht auf Mensch und Kosmos. BNN, 8. Oktober 1990
Peter Anselm Riedl, Metamorphose. Bemerkungen zur Kunst Michael Bachts.
Katalog, Folkwang Museum, Essen 1991
Rudij Bergmann, Michael Bacht. SDR Fernsehen III. Programm, Kulturzeit et zetera, 23. Mai 1991
Gerhard Finckh, Metamorphose. Einführung in die Ausstellung. Folkwang-Museum, Essen 1991
Bernhard Holeczek/Lida von Mengden(Hrsg.) Zufall als Prinzip. Spielwelt, Methode und System in der Kunst des 20. Jahrhunderts. Wilhelm-Hack-Museum, Ludwigshafen 1992, S.194/195,346
Milan Chlumsky, Die intelligente, fröhliche Kunst. Satirische Objekte bei Friebe. RNZ 17. Juni 1993
Roland Heinzmann, Kunstszene Kraichgau (I). Die Bildhauer Bacht und Goertz. Kraichgau Jahrbuch 1993
Rolf Nägele, Dunkelheit: Bedingung der Sichtbarkeit. Zu den Licht- und Schattenobjekten von Michael Bacht. Wiesenbach 1995
Sven Rech Ausstellung Satirische Objekte von Michael Bacht in der Galerie Monika Beck Homburg, Saarländischer Rundfunk SR III, 25. März 1996
Leonhard Emmerling Sinnlichkeit und Reflexivität. Künstlerportrait. Meier, 6/96
Ingo Bartsch, Hans Gercke, Plädoyer für die Langsamkeit.
Peter Anselm Riedl, Das Chaos bannen. Gedanken zur Kunst Michael Bachts.
Hans Gercke, Totenstadt und Totenwald. Notizen zu einem Projekt von Michael Bacht. Katolog, Heidelberger Kunstverein und Museum am Ostwall Dortmund, Heidelberg 1996
Milan Chlumsky, Mondrians Dornenkrone, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 7. Juni 1999
Roland Heinzmann, Katalogbesprechung Michael Bacht, Passagen 3/99
Tobias Bolsmann, Die Schaffung des Logischen Zufalls, WAZ, 8. Mai 1999
Milan Chlumsky, Der unvollkommenen Welt manchmal böse. Heidelberg 1999
Sabine Scheltwort, Das ist doch lächerlich! Katalog, Museum Ratingen, Ratingen 2001
Milan Chlumsky, Sinn, Bedeutung und ästhetischer Gehalt in den Buchobjekten von Michael Bacht, Katalog, Heidelberg 2001
Milan Chlumsky, Die Entstehung der Immaterialität, Heidelberg 2003
Milan Chlumsky, Theatrum mundi – Jeux des cartes, Hd 2007
Manfred Kästner, Theatrum mundi – Jeux des cartes, Einführung in die Ausstellung, Heidelberg 2007
References
↑ Cf. Hans Gercke, catalog of the exhibitions "Remembrance of Makimono" (Galerie Friebe Mannheim 1990) and "Im Kreis" (Kunstverein Rastatt 1990)
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