Josef Bachler

Bachler’s approach to drawing was very decisive: Realized in clear and precise lines, a woman, a man or an animal stands out against the white of the paper. Composed with clear and uncompromising forms, there is no question of whether something might be missing in his Sleid (Sled), Charr (Chair) or Shipe (Ship). Viewers are confronted with a finished work– an impression that the artist has further reinforced by adding a signature, date and title in carefully written cursive.

Bachler’s entire body of work consists of just a few drawings that convey a sense of great concentration, and that were all created based on source images. Leo Navratil had a collection of reproductions of classic masterpieces that he made available to the artists and which he occasionally also supplemented with photos from illustrated magazines. In Antonio Polliolo… Bachler found inspiration in Antonio del Pollaiuolo’s Hercules and Deianira. In the process, he isolated the part of the original that was most interesting to him: the princess, who is about to disappear out of the painting on the back of her galloping abductor. It would be impossible to recognize this visual source of Bachler’s work without the original in front of us. As with his other drawings based on reproductions, Bachler has reacted to the other artist’s work in his characteristic visual idiom. The bold line is not reminiscent of the source image, which features relatively little contrast: Bachler has emphasized the essential and left out everything unimportant. This distinctive condensation of his subject even extends to the apparent theatricality of the abducted woman. Because they are merely decorative, the romantic surroundings are entirely left out. His precise and confident use of line indicates the self-assurance with which Bachler created his works.