Günter Brus
- Introduction
- Günter Brus (born 27 September 1938, Ardning, Styria, Austria) is an Austrian painter, performance artist, graphic artist, experimental filmmaker and writer. Brus was a co-founder in 1964 of Viennese Actionism (German: Wiener Aktionismus with Otto Muehl, Hermann Nitsch, and Rudolf Schwarzkogler. His aggressively presented actionism intentionally disregarded conventions and taboos, with the intent of shocking the viewer. Sentenced to 6 months in prison after the Kunst und Revolution event at the University of Vienna in 1968, he fled to Berlin with his family and returned to Austria in 1976. Brus urinated into a glass then proceeded to cover his body in his own excrement, and ended the piece by drinking his own urine. During the performance Brus also sang the Austrian National Anthem while masturbating. Brus ended the piece by vomiting and was subsequently arrested. Through this piece and his other performance works, Brus hoped to reveal the still fascist essence of the nation. Brus also was editor of the Schastrommel (author's edition) from 1969 on. He was involved into the NO!Art movement. In 1966 he was with Gustav Metzger, Otto Muehl, Wolf Vostell, Yoko Ono and others a participant of the Destruction in Art Symposium (DIAS) in London.Brus was awarded the Grand Austrian State Prize in 1997. Most of his works are shocking and controversial. The Joanneum now houses a permanent gallery, called the Bruseum, featuring the work of Brus and fellow Viennese Actionists. In 2010, Berlin-based art film home video company Edition Kröthenhayn released a boxset including a DVD containing his films (including, inter alia, 8/64: Ana – Aktion Brus, 10c/65: Brus wünscht euch seine Weihnachten, 10b/65: Silber – Aktion Brus, 10/65: Selbstverstümmelung, 16/67: 20. September, Die Blumen des Bösen, Strangulation, Psycho-Dramolett, Kunst und Revolution, Osmose, Einatmen – Ausatmen, Handlung, Zerreißprobe, Selbstbemalung, and Wiener Spaziergang), directed by, among others, Kurt Kren, Hans Christof Stenzel, Peter Gorsen, Ernst Schmidt Jr., Helmut Kronberger, Werner Schulz, Otto Muehl, as well as by Brus himself and his wife Anni Brus, compiled and presented in a documentary format by Peter Kasperak, with a total running length of 82 minutes in a limited edition of a thousand hand-numbered copies under the title Körperanalysen: Aktionen 1964–1970. The DVD further features a 2004 52-minutes television documentary film about Brus called Schrecklich verletzlich – Günter Brus directed by Peter Kasperak, Anita Natmessnig, and Adam Wallisch as well as many slide shows of Actionism photography by Ludwig Hoffenreich and others. The boxset also sports a 100-pages book with photos and texts by Peter Weibel and Theo Altenberg.
- Wikidata
- Q677218
- Nationality
- Austrian
- Gender
- Male
- Roles
- Artist, Author, Graphic Artist, Painter, Performance Artist
- Names
- Günter Brus, Gunter Brus, Brus
- Ulan
- 500098254
Exhibitions
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Degree Zero: Drawing at Midcentury
Through Feb 6
MoMA
Last chance -
Staging Action: Performance in Photography since 1960
Jan 28–May 9, 2011
MoMA
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The Original Copy: Photography of Sculpture, 1839 to Today
Aug 1–Nov 1, 2010
MoMA
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Eye on Europe: Prints, Books & Multiples/1960 to Now
Oct 15, 2006–Jan 1, 2007
MoMA
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Into Me/Out of Me
Jun 25–Sep 25, 2006
MoMA PS1
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Günter Brus has
12 exhibitionsonline.
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Günter Brus Informel Drawing (Informelle Zeichnung) 1960
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Günter Brus Self-Painting 1 1964
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Günter Brus Handbemalung-Selbstbemalung 2, Hand-Painting Self-Painting 2 1964
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Günter Brus Vienna Walk 1965
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Günter Brus Vienna Walk 1965
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Günter Brus Aktion in einem Kreis, Action in a Circle 1966
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Günter Brus Breathing In Breathing Out 1967
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Günter Brus, Helmut Kronberger Osmosis 1967
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Günter Brus Pullover 1967
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Günter Brus Plot 1967
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Günter Brus Man Hanging Over Subway 1965–67
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Günter Brus Strangulation 1968
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Günter Brus The Flowers of Evil 1968
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Günter Brus O.T. (Mann in Anzug), Untitled (Man in suit) 1960s
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Günter Brus Körperanalyse, Body Analysis 1969
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Günter Brus Transfusion (with color instruction) 1965
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Günter Brus Untitled (action drawing) (1960s)
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Günter Brus Untitled (Action drawing) (1960s)
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Günter Brus Untitled (Transfusion 1) (1960s)
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Günter Brus Untitled (Transfusion 2) (1960s)
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Günter Brus Breaking Test 1970
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Günter Brus Psycho-Dramolett 1970
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Günter Brus Wunde Punkte (1983)
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Günter Brus Ana 1964/1984
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Günter Brus Selbstbemalung I, Self-Painting I 1964/1984
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Günter Brus Self-Painting II 1964/1984
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Günter Brus, Arnulf Rainer Depth Obscured (Vertiefung Mit Bewölkung) (1985-86)
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Günter Brus, Arnulf Rainer Untitled from Depth Obscured (Vertiefung Mit Bewölkung) 1985-86
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Günter Brus, Arnulf Rainer Untitled from Depth Obscured (Vertiefung Mit Bewölkung) 1985-86
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Günter Brus, Arnulf Rainer Untitled from Depth Obscured (Vertiefung Mit Bewölkung) 1985-86
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Günter Brus, Arnulf Rainer Untitled from Depth Obscured (Vertiefung Mit Bewölkung) 1985-86
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Günter Brus, Arnulf Rainer Untitled from Depth Obscured (Vertiefung Mit Bewölkung) 1985-86
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Günter Brus Transfusion 1965/1999
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Günter Brus Untitled 1970/2001
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Günter Brus De Lyrium 2003
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Günter Brus Aktion mit Diana, Action with Diana 1967/2005
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Günter Brus Starrkrampf 1965/2010
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Günter Brus Untitled 1966/2011
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