Art does what it wants, not what the artist wants. The artist may be ill, stupid, dead – art is not interested. It is the ‘Dictatorship of Art’ that Jonathan Meese (b. 1970) propounds. Submit to art and you no longer need religion. In sharp contrast, however, Meese’s oeuvre is in fact a ‘total self-portrait’. A portrait with many faces, for Meese plays the role of child, animal and dictator simultaneously.

The self-portrait is the unifying theme of this exhibition. Meese’s likeness appears in almost all his work. At first he would have himself photographed or depict himself in his role as artist, in his studio, along with paint and brushes. But Meese gradually began to assume roles: the prophet ‘Meesiah’, a dictator, a soldier, Dr. No, Humpty Dumpty: increasingly unrecognisable and wearing masks. Meese is an uninhibited collector of characters, from dictator Adolf Hitler to Hollywood star Scarlett Johansson. He uses these individuals as symbols, transports them to the world of art, where he can play with them. It is above all this childlike, unrestrained approach and submission to art that inspires younger generations of artists.