About
Ruprecht von Kaufmann (* February 28, 1974, in Munich) is a prominent German painter known for his expressive, narrative visual language and the fusion of figurative painting with abstract and surrealistic elements. His works oscillate between observed reality and layers of emotional perception, inviting viewers into complex visual worlds. As an important figure in contemporary figurative painting, he inspires a younger generation of painters and significantly shapes the discourse of current painting.
LIFE AND EDUCATION
Von Kaufmann was born in 1974 in Munich and studied illustration at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, where he graduated with distinction in 1997. The cinematic atmosphere of Los Angeles influenced his artistic style and enhanced the narrative quality of his works. After living in Los Angeles and New York, he settled in Berlin in 2003, where he continues to live and work.
WORK AND TECHNIQUE
Ruprecht von Kaufmann’s art is marked by a continuous exploration of the question: What can painting achieve? His works are created through a fusion of traditional painting techniques and experimental approaches: for over ten years, he has used colored linoleum as a painting surface, on which he creates incisions, scratches, and a unique texture using linoleum knives and power tools like drills, grinders, and saws. These treatments intensify the impact of his paintings and offer insight into the multi-layered creative process. The figures in his paintings often appear realistic but are, upon closer inspection, composed of dynamic brushstrokes and smudges that are developed just enough to evoke a specific image in the viewer’s mind. He refrains from using references or models, allowing his works to emerge solely from his imagination.
Von Kaufmann’s works often tackle large, universal themes and resist simple answers. Inspired by comics, novels, films, and music, he creates complex visual spaces where the emotional charge of the image takes center stage, without adhering to clear narrative structures. These open compositions invite viewers to interpret the images individually for themselves.
SCULPTURES
In addition to his painting, Ruprecht von Kaufmann also creates sculptures. He uses stencils originally employed in the painting process and transforms them after their use into delicate three-dimensional artworks that resemble painting in space. He also creates bronze sculptures based on casts of everyday objects. Through the transformation of the material, these objects undergo a shift in meaning, acquiring a new, poetic dimension.
COLLECTIONS AND TEACHING ACTIVITIES
Ruprecht von Kaufmann’s works are included in many significant private and public collections, such as the collection of the Federal Republic of Germany and the Fondazione Coppola collection in Italy. Alongside his artistic practice, von Kaufmann is also committed to teaching. He has taught at various universities, including the University of the Arts in Berlin, the University of Applied Sciences in Hamburg, and the Academy of Fine Arts in Leipzig, where he held a professorship in Anatomy and Drawing from 2012 to 2014.
EXHIBITIONS
– Selection –
2025
DER LETZTE AKT – Soloshow
Museum im Kleihues-Bau, Kornwestheim, Germany
24. May–14. September 2025
HERBST – Soloshow
Haus am Lützowplatz, Berlin, Germany
10. September–4. January 2026
ZWISCHEN DEN STÜHLEN – Soloshow
Buchheim Museum, Bernried, Germany
28. November–15. March 2026
2024
WASTELAND – Soloshow
Museum Bensheim, Bensheim, Germany
22. November–12. January 2025
DER WEISSE WAL – Soloshow
Bluerider ART Shanghai, China
2. November–31. December
HOME SWEET HOME – ZUHAUSE SEIN VON 1900 BIS HEUTE – Groupshow
Kunstforum Ingelheim, Altes Rathaus, Ingelheim, Germany
21. April–30. June
RETURN TO STORYLAND – Soloshow
Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery
WEST PALM BEACH, Florida, USA
6. April–11. May
DISSONANCE PLATFORM GERMANY (2) – Groupshow
Stadtgalerie Kiel, Germany
16. March–26. May
2023
HUNDERT – Soloshow
Gallerie Thomas Fuchs, Stuttgart, Germany
22. September–4. November
FORESHADOW – Groupshow
Bluerider ART Shanghai, China
20. May–30. July
MEDEA – Groupshow
Ancient Market, Siracusa, Italy
5. May–31. October
2022
DISSONANCE. PLATFORM GERMANY – Groupshow
Künstlerhaus Bethanien, Berlin, Germany
22. July–11. September
MONOLOGUE – Soloshow
Bluerider ART Taipei, Taipei, Taiwan
9. July–4. September
IN THE STREET – Soloshow
Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery, London, England
19. March–19. April
INTERACTION NAPOLI – Groupshow
Fondazione Made in Cloister, Napoli, Italy
12. March–17. November
ON THE WALL – Groupshow
Milano, Italy
19. January–19. March
DAS EIGENE IM FREMDEN – Groupshow
Museum Bensheim, Germany
18. January–20. March
2020/2021
INSIDE THE OUTSIDE BERLIN – Soloshow
Kommunale Galerie Gutshaus Steglitz, Berlin, Germany
11. December 2020–28. February 2021
ALL THE DAYS AND NIGHTS – Soloshow
Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery, London, England
28. February–9. May
THE THREE PRINCES OF SERENDIP – Soloshow
Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery, London, England
18. January–22. February
2019
FEELINGS – Groupshow
Pinakothek der Moderne München, Germany
8. November 2019–13. September 2020
DIE AUGEN FEST GESCHLOSSEN – Soloshow
Gallerie Thomas Fuchs, Stuttgart, Germany
20. September–2. November
METAFYSICA – Groupshow
Tønsberg, Norway
28. September–29. December
BIRKHOLM’S ECHO – Groupshow
Faaborg Museum, Denmark
14. June–20. September
DIE DREI PRINZEN VON SERENDIP – Soloshow
Kunstsammlung Neubrandenburg,
Neubrandenburg, Germany
20. June–15. September
INSIDE THE OUTSIDE BREMEN – Soloshow
Museen Böttcherstrasse, Bremen, Germany
16. March–25. May
INSIDE THE OUTSIDE UN – Soloshow
United Nations Headquarters, New York, USA
14.–20. January
2018
LIEDERBUCH – Soloshow
Gallerie Thomas Fuchs, Stuttgart, Germany
12. January–10. February
EROS AND THANATOS – Groupshow
Museum Abtei Liesborn, Wadersloh-Liesborn, Germany
6. May–4. August
NEUE SCHWARZE ROMANTIK – Groupshow
Künstlerhaus Palais Thurn und Taxis, Bregenz, Austria
26. May–01.July
NEUE SCHWARZE ROMANTIK – Groupshow
Topicuv Salon, Prague, Czech Republic
June–July
CONTEMPORARY CHAOS – Groupshow
Vestfossen Kunstlaboratorium, Vestfossen, Norway
5. May–23. September
DIE EVAKUIERUNG DES HIMMELS – Soloshow
Kunsthalle Erfurt, Erfurt, Germany
21. January–2. April
NEW FRONTIERS OF PAINTING – Groupshow
Fondazione Stelline, Mailand, Italy
16. November 20017–25. February 2018
2017
NEUE SCHWARZE ROMANTIK – Groupshow
Künstlerhaus Bethaninen Berlin, Germany
24. April 2017–10. December
ECCE CREATURA – Groupshow
Kallmann-Museum Ismaning, Ismaning, Germany
18. February–23. April
EVENT HORIZON – Soloshow
Kristin Hjellegjerde Gallery in London, England
24. February–25. March
2016
WELT AM RAND – Groupshow
Kunsthaus Erfurt, Erfurt, Germany
25. October–25. November
WAHLVERWANDTSCHAFTEN, GERMAN ART SINCE THE LATE 1960S – Groupshow
Kunsthalle Arsenals, Riga, Latvia
17 June–21. August
SAMMLUNG BROSKA – Groupshow
Kunsthaus Wiesbaden, Germany
21. May–28. June
THE GOD OF SMALL AND BIG THINGS – Soloshow
Galerie Crone, Berlin, Germany
30. January–19. March
2015
WAHRHEITEN – Groupshow
Museum Abtei Liesborn des Kreises Warendorf,
Wadersloh-Liesborn, Germany
8. November 2015–10. January 2016
GRÖSSERBESSERSCHNELLERMEHR – Soloshow
Forum Kunst, Rottweil, Germany
22. November 2015–3. January 2016
DU SOLLST DIR (K)EIN BILD MACHEN – Groupshow
Berliner Dom, Berlin, Germany
1. March – 14. June 2015
2014
THE SEA – Groupshow
Brandts Museum, Odense, Denmark
9. October 2014–1. March 2015
MANUELA KASEMIR, MICHAEL JUST, RUPRECHT VON KAUFMANN – Groupshow
EIGEN + ART Lab, Berlin, Germany
11. September–25. October
ROHKUNSTBAU XX, Revolution und Illusion – Groupshow
Schloss Roskow, Germany
6. June–21. September
WAFFENSICHTEN – Groupshow
Neue Galerie Dachau, Germany
16. May–13. July
DIE HALLUZINIERTE WELT – MALEREI AM RAND DER WIRKLICHKEIT – Groupshow
HaL (Haus am Lützowplatz), Berlin, Germany
9. April–29. June
FABEL – Soloshow
Georg Kolbe Museum, Berlin, Germany
14. February–30. March
CARNA{VA}L – Soloshow
Museum Abtei Liesborn des Kreises Warendorf, Germany
22. February–27. April
Collections
AmC Collezione Coppola, Vicenza, Italien
Colección Solo, Madrid, Spanien
Collection Deutsche Bundesbank, Frankfurt am Main, Deutschland
Sammlung zeitgenössischer Kunst der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Bonn, Deutschland
Collectiondes Deutschen Bundestages, Berlin, Deutschland
Collection Holger Friedrich, Berlin, Deutschland
Collection Hildebrand, Leipzig, Deutschland
Collection Kunstmuseum Stuttgart, Deutschland
Collection Museum Abtei Liesborn,
Wadersloh-Liesborn, Deutschland
Collection Ole Faarup, Kopenhagen, Dänemark
Collection Philara, Düsseldorf, Deutschland
Collection Veronika Smetackova, Prag, Tschechien
Hort Family Collection, New York, USA
Uziyel Collection, London, Großbritannien