Oswald, Karlheinz (*1958 Worms), Female Torso, 1998

Karlheinz Oswald(*1958 Worms), Female Torso , 1998. Greenish patinated bronze on cast base, 17.9 x 6.5 x 5 cm, signed "OSWALD" in the cast on the base and dated (19)'98.

Exposé as PDF

- Classical Movement -

After ten years of intensive artistic study of the body in movement through dance, culminating in a residency at the Deutsche Staatsoper Ballet in Berlin in 1996, Oswald's Female Torso, created in 1998, is in a sense the sum of his studies. Although the statuette appears almost motionless in comparison to the dance, the artist makes no explicit reference to dance with the frontal, fragmentary figure, but rather to classical sculpture. Against this background, it contains its actual movement: The torso is tilted slightly off-axis to the right, breaking the strict axiality of classical sculpture. Accordingly, the legs do not extend in an imaginary contrapposto, which is the very symbol of the internally balanced, self-contained classical sculpture; rather, the implied asymmetry of the supporting leg and the playing leg is a slight but clear extension. However, in order not to present the striding out as such and to maintain the reference to classical sculpture, the legs are only shown in fragments.

The figure releases its inherent impulse to move precisely from the reference to classical sculpture. In this way, Oswald makes it clear that classical resting in oneself is a deviation from the essence of the body, since it is per se something in motion.

The impulse of movement is particularly evident in the view from the back, where the spine itself defines an axis that obviously deviates from the central vertical. When the figure is viewed from the right, the movement is even more pronounced. From the other side, however, the figure appears almost classically still, except for the asymmetry of the breasts. It is significant that Oswald has placed his signature here, as if he wanted to emphasize a new classicism formed by movement, which is revealed in the observation of the various aspects of the figure. It is only in movement that the harmonious naturalness of the human body is revealed, the cultivation of which leads to the art of dance.

At the same time, the natural harmony of movement exudes an erotic aura of femininity. The deep greenish patina lends the body an almost magical, fluctuating quality that appears with varying intensity depending on the lighting, enhancing the sensuality of the body. This shimmering from within combined with the sculptural surface create its own movement, which in turn contributes to the movement of the sculpture. In addition, the sculptural surface design illustrates the act of creation. This adds another dimension of time to the sculpture, which is ultimately complemented by the temporality of the material, which is particularly evident in the undulating base.

About the artist

Karlheinz Oswald studied sculpture at the Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz from 1981 to 1990. While still a student, he began working as a freelance artist in the studio community of sculptor Thomas Duttenhoefer in Wiesbaden in 1983 and produced his first bronze casts in 1984.

After a study trip to Rome and his encounter with the works of Bernini, Oswald began in 1988 to devote himself to dance and the representation of the moving body. This subject gave him the opportunity to express his expressive style in the expression of movement.

In 1989 he opened his own studio in the old town of Mainz, which he ran until 1991. In the same year, Oswald traveled to New York and produced studies of dancers at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. After travels to Florence and Verona, he continued his artistic dance studies at the Deutsche Staatsoper Ballet in Berlin in 1996, creating works inspired by dance. In 2000, he returned to the ballet in Mainz and created sculptures of dancers.

In 2007 Oswald moved to Switzerland, where he lived first in Locarno and since 2011 in Zurich. He became a Swiss citizen in 202

In addition to depicting the body in motion in dance and, more recently, music, Oswald has incorporated the expression of movement into sacred subjects and his striking portrait sculptures. Capturing the essence of movement led to numerous public commissions and recognition of his art through grants and awards.

In addition to sculpture, Oswald devoted himself to painting and printmaking, with a particular fascination for etching as the most expressive graphic medium.

As a sculptor and draftsman, Oswald's outstanding talent is evident in two areas of his work. One is his intense preoccupation with dance, ballet and aesthetic movement. The other is portraiture, the ability to capture and creatively realize the special character and charisma of his subject.

Günther Zulauf

Scholarships and Awards

1985 Daniel-Henry-Kahnweiler-Förderpreis

1986 Gutenberg-Stipendium der Stadt Mainz

1988 Mainzer Stadtdrucker

2009 Ehrenpreis der Ike-und-Berthold-Roland-Stiftung

Work in Public Spaces

1986 Kardinal-Volk-Büste, Mainz

1988 Tanzplatz, Brunnenanlage und Figurengruppe, Mainz

1991 Tänzer, Limburg

1993 Lesende, Unna

1994 Heilige Maria Katharina Kasper, Pfarrkirche Wirges, Westerwald

1994 Im Tanz rotiert die Welt, Landesbank Mainz

1995 Nike und Niobe, Landesbausparkasse Mainz

1995 Rupert Mayer Porträt, Domkirche St. Eberhard, Stuttgart

1996 Undine, Brunnenanlage, Alzey

1996 Die schöne Palatina, Freinsheim

1998 Hildegard von Bingen, Museum am Strom, Bingen

1998 Christusfigur im Mainzer Dom

1999 Glasbild für die Kathedrale von Juigalpa in Nicaragua

1999 Pierre de Coubertin, Internationales olympisches Comitée, Lausanne

1999 Sebastian-Münster-Denkmal, St. Remigius, Ingelheim

1999 Bonifatius, Mainzer Doms

2000 Primera, Luisenpark Mannheim

2000 Edith Stein, St. Peter und Paul in Oberpleichfeld, Diözese Würzburg

2000 Heiliger Ansgar, Vorplatz des Hamburger Neuen Mariendoms

2000 Gutenberg, vor St. Christoph in Mainz

2003 Maria Ward, Maria Ward-Schule Mainz

2003 Franz Adam Landvogt, St. Peter in Mainz

2003 Drei Gründerbüsten der Henriettenstiftung Hannover

2004 Die Rheintöchter, Mainz

2005 Stele mit der 1986 erschaffenen Büste auf dem Kardinal-Volk-Platz in Mainz

2006 Adolph Kolping in der St.-Kilian-Kirche in Nierstein

2009 Friedrich-Alfred-Krupp-Stele auf Capri

2014 Zwei Tänzerfiguren, Konz

2014 Madeleine Delbrêl, Mainz

2015 Noor Inayat Khan, École élémentaire in Suresnes bei Paris

2015 Hanns Dieter Hüsch, Moers

2015 Epitaph für Bischof Franz Xaver Eder im Dom St. Stephan zu Passau

2015 Cicely Saunders, Palliativ-Station der Universitätsmedizin Mainz

2015 Jochen Rindt, Mainzer Automobil Club

2017 Axel Th. Simon, Lehranstalt für Brauerei Berlin

2018 Lübecker Märtyrer im Domherrenfriedhof von St. Marien-Dom Hamburg

Solo Exhibitions

1987 Daniel-Henry-Kahnweiler-Haus, Rockenhausen

1988 Gutenberg-Museum, Mainz

1989 Bildhauergalerie Messer-Ladwig, Berlin

1990 Kunstverein Elmshorn Marstall im Schloss, Hanau

1993 Dommuseum, Frankfurt am Main Diözesan-Museum, Limburg Hellweg-Museum, Unna

1995 Galerie St. Eberhard, Stuttgart

1996 Deutsche Staatsoper Unter den Linden, Berlin

1996 Burggrafiat, Alzey

1996 Galerie Zulauf, Freinsheim

1996 Galerie Winter, Wiesbaden

1998 Landesvertretung Rheinland-Pfalz, Brüssel

1999 Galerie Française, München

2000 Galerie Winter, Wiesbaden

2001 Comune di Brissago, Schweiz

2001 Sainte-Marguerite-sur-Mer, Frankreich

2001 Galerie Zulauf, Freinsheim

2001 Museum Pachen, Rockenhausen

2001 Schloss Fußberg, Engel und Zimmermann, Gauting

2002 Kulturstiftung Sparkasse, Moers

2003 Saint-Romain-de-Colbosc, Frankreich

2003 Galerie Winter, Wiesbaden

2004 Galerie Zulauf, Freinsheim

2004 Beach Lounge Hotel Delta, Ascona, Schweiz

2004 Galleria Kröger, Brissago, Schweiz

2005 Maison de la Culture, Gauchy, Frankreich

2006 Galerie Heidefeld, Krefeld Galerie Zulauf, Freinsheim

2007 Galerie Winter, Wiesbaden

2007 Galleria Kröger, Ascona, Schweiz

2008 Asiago Art Hall, Seoul, Korea

2008 Galerie Zulauf, Freinsheim

2009 Museum altes Rathaus Ingelheim

2010 Ortsmuseum Trotte, Arlesheim, Basel

2010 Galleria Kröger, Ascona, Schweiz

2012 Galerie Winter, Wiesbaden

2012 Galleria Kröger, Ascona, Schweiz

2012 Heinrich-Fries-Haus, Heilbronn

2013 Galerie Depelmann, Langenhagen

2015 Galerie Rother-Winter, Wiesbaden

2016 Galerie Rother Winter, Wiesbaden

2016 Art Galleria Rivabella, Magliaso

2018 Städtische Galerie Eschborn

2018 Galerie Depelmann, Langenhagen

2020 Galerie Wiedmann, Stuttgart – Bad Cannstatt

2022 Galerie Rother, Wiesbaden