Kunstpreis Villa Romana, Florenz 77 / Premio d’arte Tedesco Villa Romana Firenze 77. Mattner, Oppermann, Schanz, Wiegand.

Florence.: Villa Romana., 1978. Publisher’s wrappers.. (29.3 x 20.8 cm).. pp. 105, (7). With numerous illustrations throughout, including 10 in colour. In December of 1976 Kippenberger moved to Florence, where he lived during the next several months while producing his first complete series of paintings, ‘Uno di voi, un Tedesco in Firenze’. It is his first work that resulted from sustained reflection on what it meant to fully immerse himself within an untested place and culture. During his residency in Florence, Kippenberger participated in the artistic scene centred around the Renaissance Villa Romana, on the outskirts of the city. The Villa Romana Prize was initiated in order to offer an opportunity to talented, primarily younger artists resident in Germany to further develop their artistic position during a prolonged stay in Florence. Each year, a catalogue was produced to celebrate the winners of the prize. This catalogue of the 1977 prize (which was won by Jakob Mattner, Anna Oppermann, Heinz Schanz, and Gottfried Wiegand) is important because it is the first mention of Kippenberger in a published catalogue. Whilst most of the catalogue describes the works of that year’s winners, Kippenberger has two fleeting mentions in the catalogue, firstly listed as a guest at the villa in April of 1977, and secondly there is a rather grainy small black-and-white photograph of Kippenberger, seated at dinner with Ulrike Rosenbach and the artistic director Joachim Burmeister. An overlooked document from Kippenberger’s fledgling career, and not in the Koch catalogue raisonné. [Ref. Firenze 1977. Luciano Bartolini, Michael Buthe, Klaus Vom Bruch, Martin Kippenberger, Marcel Odenbach, Anna Oppermann, Ulrike Rosenbach &tc. Materials on Italian and German artists in Florence and Villa Romana around 1977].