The artist and the tensions of the present
Mueller-Stahl devotes numerous paintings to international and national current affairs. He responds directly to events and debates. Always astute in his observations, sometimes empathetic, sometimes sarcastic. He links the sporting milestone of the German men’s football team winning the World Cup in 2014 with a beer advertisement. This is as much a commentary on the burgeoning national sentiment as it is on the commercial exploitation of major events. And not least on the corruptibility of those involved, as demonstrated by the FIFA scandal in 2015.
As someone who lived through the Nazi regime of terror and the dictatorship of the GDR, Mueller-Stahl is highly sensitive to the dangers, failures and weaknesses of politics. The seriousness of his engagement with our present is also evident in the harshness and indignation of his formulations. For example, about President Obama’s inability to act in the US two-party system and Donald Trump’s despotism.