From 12 September: Galerie Schwind is exhibiting works from the estate of Günter Thiele

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From Saturday 12 September, Galerie Schwind in Leipzig will be hosting the first exhibition of paintings and drawings by Günter Thiele following his death in January this year. On display will be, amongst other things, around 30 paintings from the years 1952 to 2025, as Thiele continued to work in his studio in Eutritzsch right up until the end. Among them are many works never before exhibited, which demonstrate that Thiele brought a very special, unobtrusive yet subtle perspective to the Leipzig School.

Thiele, who studied painting at the Berlin-Charlottenburg University of the Arts before returning to Leipzig, continued to work in his home city until his death – as a freelance painter and draughtsman and, from 1975 to 1992, as a lecturer at the Leipzig Academy of Fine Arts (HGB). Far too little recognition has so far been given to his role as a teacher to many of the now well-known painters of the Leipzig School, to whom Thiele imparted not only the basics of perspective, but also his approach to work, his artistic standards and his sense of precision.

The highlight of the exhibition is a large cityscape of Leipzig depicting Augustusplatz in the 1960s, which Günter Thiele never exhibited during his lifetime. One can only speculate as to why not. Perhaps he did not yet consider the painting to be complete. Whilst sifting through his estate, it became clear that Thiele had been revisiting individual paintings for decades. He repeatedly reworked paintings he believed to be finished, painting over details, adding new ones, and altering the colour scheme in parts or in its entirety – further evidence of his constant engagement with his own art and the high standards he set for his work.

The exhibition will also showcase very early painterly studies from the 1950s for the first time. Here, the viewer can discover a very different side to Thiele: on display is a rather expressive glimpse into a ballet class, rows of Berlin houses and the first street scene featuring figures, which offers a glimpse of how his work would develop.

Günter Thiele “Works from the Estate”, exhibition at Galerie Schwind, Leipzig (Springerstraße 5).

Opening on Saturday, 12 September at 2 pm

Exhibition dates: 12 September to 20 October 2026