Gustav Metzger

Gustav Metzger (10 April 1926, Nuremberg – 1 March 2017, London) was a stateless artist and political activist who developed the concept of Auto-Destructive Art and the Art Strike. Together with John Sharkey, he initiated the Destruction in Art Symposium in 1966. Metzger was recognised for his protests in the political and artistic realms.

Early life and education

Metzger was born to Polish Jewish parents in Nuremberg, Germany, in 1926 and came to Britain in 1939 He lost his Polish citizenship and was stateless since the late 1940s. He received a grant from the UK Jewish community to study at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp between 1948 and 1949.

Metzger became a vegetarian in 1944 and remained a strong advocate of vegetarianism throughout his life. He was among the first to take a stand against environmental pollution and nuclear proliferation. and the Art Strike movements. He was also active in the Committee of 100 - a 'named' member

In 1959, Metzger published the first auto-destructive manifesto Auto-Destructive Art. This was given as a lecture to the Architectural Association School of Architecture (AA) in 1964, which was taken over by students as an artistic 'Happening'. The Architectural Association published, in 2015, a facsimile edition of Metzger's lecture transcript. In 1962 he participated in the Festival of Misfits organised by members of the Fluxus group, at Gallery One, London. Guitarist Pete Townshend from The Who studied with Metzger, and during the 1960s, Metzger's work was projected on screens at The Who concerts. Metzger also worked with Cream, providing them with light shows in the 1960s.

In 2005, he selected EASTinternational which he proclaimed to be "The art exhibition without the art."

Throughout the 60 years that Metzger produced politically engaged works, he incorporated materials ranging from trash to old newspapers, liquid crystals to industrial materials, and even acid."

From 29 September to 8 November 2009, the Serpentine Gallery featured the most extensive exhibition in the UK of his work. He lived and worked in East London.

Works

Public Demonstration of Auto-Destructive Art This was originally made in 1960 and remade as Recreation of First Public Demonstration of Auto-Destructive Art in 2004.

Demonstration at the South Bank, London, 1961

Acid action painting

Construction with glass Construction with glass. Height 13 ft. Width 9' 6". Materials. Glass, metal, adhesive tape. Technique. The glass sheets suspended by adhesive tape fall onto the concrete ground in a pre-arranged sequence. — Gustav Metzger

Historic Photographs This ongoing series of work consists of enlarged press photographs of catastrophic events of the 20th century presented to the viewer using confrontational and experiential methods.

Recreation of First Public Demonstration of Auto-Destructive Art This was a recreation of the original demonstration made in 1960. Metzger declared the piece ruined and created a new bag as a replacement.

Influences The painter David Bomberg, the leading light of the Borough Group, taught Metzger and was influential in his development.

Death Metzger died at the age of 90 at his home in London on 1 March 2017. He is buried on the east side of Highgate Cemetery.

Legacy When Metzger was lecturing at Ealing Art College, one of his students was rock musician Pete Townshend, who later cited Metzger's concepts as an influence for his famous guitar-smashing during performances of The Who. He has also influenced the self-eating computer virus works by the digital artist Joseph Nechvatal.