Karl Reisenbauer

*1940, Austria

Karl Reisenbauer was born in Lower Austria. He received psychiatric treatment from the age of 26 onwards. His drawings evolved as part of what Leo Navratil described as a “confessional urge”.

He wrote descriptions of his sexual fantasies and memories and drew pictures to minimise his punishment by God. His early drawings are principally concerned with religious subjects. As his psychiatric condition improved he chose subjects such as top sportsmen and bodybuilders, for which he became very well-known. In these, Leo Navratil recognise Reisenbauer’s earlier idealised images of himself. In 1972 his work was shown as part of the second exhibition of Gugging artists at Galerie nächst St. Stephan in Vienna, titled “Pareidolien 2”. His work can be seen in the Niederösterreiches Landesmuseum (Lower Austria Museum), the collection of Arnulf Rainer, Vienna, and in the collection of Karin and Gerhard Dammann, Switzerland.

Selected works