The Bernese artist Tomas Kratky (1961-1988), during his all too brief life, managed to leave an impressive oeuvre behind. It is regarded as a significant contribution to figurative painting of the 1980s. Living under the burden of serious illness, his images and drawings revolve around existential subject matter such as birth, love, sexuality, religion, and death. The self-portrait, portraits of people close to him, single figures and groups of figures - occasionally accompanied by animals – are the most frequent motifs in his work. He remained true to the end to his belief that art was a radical form of self-reflection, which had to be done with boundless personal commitment. 

Following the 1991 retrospective held in the Kunstmuseum Bern that focused on Tomas Kratky's paintings, the exhibition in the Graphics Room presents a selection of his works on paper.

Curator: Claudine Metzger