Print of the Day!! Saturday, February 20, 2021, by Karl Repfennig - R.I.P. - (1936-2021): "Sipapu (birth)" block print, 1988, 4/25. $300.00.

Print of the Day!! Saturday, February 20, 2021, is by German artist Karl Repfennig (1936-2021). R.I.P.

A personal comment on Karl, who was an important niche as part of Santa Rosa culture, will follow this post, for any who are interested.

"Sipapu (birth)"  is a relief print, a block-print by German printmaker Karl Repfennig done in 1988. The image measures 5-5/8 x 4-5/8". It is pencil initialed, titled, dated, and editioned "4/25" in the lower margin. It was printed by the artist on a sheet of white wove paper that measures 12 x 9".

This relief print by German printmaker Karl Repfennig is available from the gallery for $300.00.

Shipping costs will be discussed. California residents will have sales tax added. Out of state residents may be responsible for use tax, depending on state law. Time payments can be arranged. Contact the gallery for any condition or other questions."Sipapu" is a Hopi word that refers to the small hole or indentation in the floor of a kiva, symbolizing the portal through which the ancient ancestors emerged into the world.

By 1988 Karl Repfennig, who was born in Germany but received his formal art education in the United States, was living once more in his birth-land. Having established himself as an artist as well as a show curator over the decade since his return, he was approached by a representative of the Holzminden government, Thomas Veil, to help form an artists' cooperative in the newly renovated Bevern Castle. Refennig agreed to the terms and relocated to the space, opening a studio that not only functioned as a workspace for himself but as a venue for artists, writers, musicians, and more.

While transitioning to this new life, Repfennig still made time for art. In 1988, the same year as the relocation of his studio, he created a series of woodcuts in the Naive fashion, taking inspiration from his time traveling through the southwestern United States and the homes of the indigenous Puebloans called "kivas". The cycle of life, including birth, spiritualism and ritual, and death, all play parts in the series. Symbols of primitive and modern origin are found in the depictions of clocks, colonial churches, arrows, rivers, and the repeat patterns found in Pueblo arts all play a part in his imagery.

A personal note about an old friend, Karl Repfennig:

I first met Karl Repfennig around 1972 at his new restaurant he called "The Painted House" on College and Mendocino, across the street from the gallery. He had moved to the US in 1962 and tried various businesses before settling in Santa Rosa, California. The Painted House restaurant was two buildings with a dining patio between them. Karl was a self taught artist at that time and decorated the interior spaces with his eccentric, Expressionist inspired paintings. He hired excellent chefs, had one of the early great wine lists and put together the first "casual" fine dining in Santa Rosa and, I believe, really created one of the models for the future of restaurants in the county, now world famous for its dining.

Karl had a knack for hiring staff, a fantastic group of chefs, waiters, and waitresses who actually interacted with the clients, but his biggest coup was the entertainment, early jobs for Kate Wolf and Don Coffin, Hugh Shacklett and John Brandeberg (they became "The Perfect Crime" there), and many other musicians.

After selling the Painted House and trying a couple other ventures, at age 40 he went to school and studied art at the San Francisco Art Institute, returning to Hanover, Germany in 1979 where he pursued a long career as an artist. Karl and I would talk a couple times a year and would get together during his couple of trips back to the county, I never got to Germany.

To purchase this work, see other works, or read a biography for Karl Repfennig use this link to our website: https://www.annexgalleries.com/inventory/artist/1981/Repfennig/Karl

Use this link to view our complete inventory on our website: https://www.annexgalleries.com/inventory?q=