artist

Work appreciation
Jonas is multi-talented: painter, writer, philosopher, urbanist. His versatility, but also his incorruptible engagement with artistic and urban issues of the 60s and 70s, have made the public's reception of his painted and graphic work difficult. He rarely repeats himself, because he rejects any formula, is committed to constant change and tries out many forms of expression: works that preserve the legacy of expressionism, classicist, surreal and abstract works make up the broad spectrum of his oeuvre. The basic tone remains expressionism, which Jonas comes into contact with in Berlin in the 1920s. Berlin is followed by Paris, which he experiences as a haven for emigrants after 1933. These years of passionate engagement with threats and existential questions shape the painter and his work. Jonas is one of the most important portraitists. His graphic cycles also document his preoccupation with fundamental questions: Gilgamesh (1943), Suite for the Dance (1944), the illustrations for Gotthelf, Horace and Don Giovanni. Jonas developed a colorfully suggestive painting style, sometimes with symbolic motifs, which is particularly evident in his landscapes of the Himalayas or Brazil. At the center of these works is the antagonism between civilization and nature, the dramatic dialogue between man and earth.

Excerpt from a TV show with Walter Jonas (1958)
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Below: Selection of works of art.
More: Electronic catalogue of works https://walterjonas.ch/db/login.php