Class Society

One feature of seventeenth-century Dutch genre painting is its focus on daily life. It was not uncommon for artistic beauty to find itself challenged by the claim to aesthetic truths. What was once a novelty in Netherlandish art, however, has lost none of its charisma for today’s viewers. This illustrated volume offers evidence of this in a fascinating dialogue between the historic masters of genre painting and the shooting stars of contemporary art. Works by Johannes Vermeers, Pieter de Hoochs, and other painters meet Stefan Marx’s contemporary typefaces and Lars Eidinger’s photographs. This unique synopsis not only reveals historic distinctions but the surprising similarities in themes and pictorial inventiveness are captivating.    Previously published by Hatje Cantz: Lars Eidinger: Autistic Disco (2020) Stefan Marx: Schriftbilder (2020) Stefan Marx: Notes (2019) LARS EIDINGER (*1976) is a versatile artist. He can be seen in numerous TV and film productions, as a ensemble member of the Berlin Schaubühne and as the DJ. With his precise eye for the contradictions and poetry of everyday life, he is also a sought-after photo and video artist. STEFAN MARX (*1979) is an artist. He processes his precise observations of his environment in apt, mostly humorous, poetic, but also thought-provoking typefaces and figurative works. He has had numerous international exhibitions, including in Paris, New York and Tokyo. He self-publishes artist books and makes record covers for various labels. Marx founded the T-shirt label Lousy Livin in 1995. Since 2017 he has had a cooperation with KPM Berlin; in August 2019 he drew a daily column in The New York Times.SANDRA PISOT (*1974) studied art history, classical archeology, as well as modern and contemporary history at the universities of Augsburg, Parma, and Stuttgart; after holding positions at the Bavarian Staatsgemäldesammlungen Munich and the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, she has been head of the Old Masters collection at the Hamburger Kunsthalle since 2014.