Born in Osijek, Croatia in 1924 and died in Paris, France in 2004.
He is recognized as one of the most prominent artists related to Concrete Art after 1945. His meanders are interpreted differently depending on the period in which they appeared: first in the context of geometric abstractions and neo-constructivism of the New Tendencies of the 1960s and with their asceticism and interest for the absurd present in the context of anti-art of the neo-avantgard.
Knifer represented Croatia in the 2001 Venice Biennale. In 2014, the Museum of Contemporary Art, Zagreb mounted a full retrospective of his work; he has previously been exhibited at the Centre Pompidou, Paris; MAMCO, Geneva; and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney; works by Knifer can be found in various private and museum collections around the world including the MoMA in New York City, Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus in Munich, the National Gallery in Berlin.
Selected solo exhibitions
2024
Julije Knifer, galerie frank elbaz, Paris, France.
Julije Knifer: Works from 1950 to 2004, Peter Freeman Inc. New York, USA.
Julije Knifer – Meanders without bounds, Art Encounters Foundation, Timișoara, Romania.Julije Knifer: From The Collection of The Museum of Contemporary Art Zagreb, Museum of Contemporary Arts, Zagreb, Croatia.
2023
Julije Knifer: Rules and Emotions, OSMOS, New York, USA.
2021
Julije Knifer, galerie frank Elbaz, Paris, France.
Julije Knifer – Epigraphiques françaises, Institut français en Croatie, Zagreb, Croatia.
2020
Julije Knifer. Uncompromising. In cooperation with MSU – Museum for Contemporary Art, Zagreb. Curated by Radmila Iva Janković, MSU Zagreb, Neue Galerie Graz, Graz, Austria.
Meander, Mitchell-Innes & Nash, New York, USA.
2018
Mural Paintings, galerie frank elbaz, Paris, France.
Julije Knifer, MAMCO, Geneva, Switzerland.
2017
Julije Knifer, Museum Haus Konstruktiv, Zurich, Switzerland.
2016
Elements, Galerija Gregor Podnar, Berlin, Germany.
2015
Uncompromising, Museum of Fine Arts, Split, Croatia.
The meander is a form of my freedom, Galerie Frank Elbaz, Paris, France.
Uncompromising, Museum of Fine Arts, Osijek, Croatia.
2014
Uncompromising, Museum of Contemporary Art, Zagreb, Croatia.
Meandri, Museum of Slavonia, Osijek, Croatia.
Julije Knifer, Mitchell-Innes & Nash, New York City, USA.
2013
Julije Knifer, Galerie Adris, Rovinj, Croatia.
2011
Julije Knifer – MEANDER, Galerie Arndt, Berlin, Germany.
2010
KNIFER. Lignes. Autoportraits, Galerie Frank Elbaz, curated by Arnauld Pierre, Paris, France.
2008
Galerie Oniris, Rennes, France.
2007
Inauguration de la fresque à la station Jean Jaurès du métro de Toulouse, Toulouse, France.
2004
Galerie Gisèle Linder, Basel, Switzerland.
2003
Maison de la Culture, Bourges, France.
2002
Galerie Frank Elbaz, Paris, France.
2001
Venice Biennale, Croatian Pavilion, Venice, Italy.
2000
MAMCO- Musée d’Art Moderne et Contemporain, Geneva, Switzerland.
1999
Galerie Frank Elbaz, Paris, France.
1998
MAMCO- Musée d’Art Moderne et Contemporain, Geneva, Switzerland.
1997
Galerie Schoeller, Düsseldorf, Germany.
MAMCO- Musée d’Art Moderne et Contemporain, Geneva, Switzerland.
Ikona Gallery, Venice, Italy.
1996
La Box, Bourges, France.
MAMCO- Musée d’Art Moderne et Contemporain, Geneva, Switzerland.
1993
Villa Arson, Nice, France.
1992
Villa Saint-Clair, Sète, France.
Villa Arson, Nice, France.
1991
Galerie Joseph Dutertre, Rennes, France.
1990
Galerie Dany Keller, Munich, Germany.
1987
Galerie Ingrid Dacic, Tübingen, Germany.
Until the meander, Dom JNA Gallery, Zagreb, Croatia.
Galerija Meander, Apatin, Serbia.
1986
Galerie Schoeller, Düsseldorf, Germany.
Galerija SC, Zagreb, Croatia.
1985
Galerie Hoffmann, Friedberg, Germany.
1984
Galerija Likovnih Umjetnosti, Osijek, Croatia.
1979
Kunsthalle, Tübingen, Germany.
1976
Galleria del Cavallino, Venice, Italy.
1973
Galerie im Zimmer Theater, Tübingen, Germany.
1966
Galerija Suvremene Umjetnosti, Zagreb, Croatia.
1958
Salon ULUH (Knifer/Senecic) Zagreb, Croatia.
Selected group exhibitions
2020
Umjetnost je sumnja / Art is Doubt I/III, Lexart Skladište, Zagreb, Croatia.
2018
Recollection – A Journey After 28 Years, PROYECTOSMONCLOVA, Mexico City, Mexico.
The Other Trans-Atlantic, Garage Museum of Contemporary Art, Moscow, Russia.
Hello World. Revision einer Sammlung, Hamburger Bahnhof – Museum für Gegenwart, Berlin, Germany.
Instructions for Watching – What the Body Wants?, MMSU, Rijeka, Croatia.
2017
ICON, Galerie Krinzinger, Vienna, Austria.
Gorgona, Kunstmuseum Liechtenstein, Vaduz, Liechtenstein.
Meandering, Abstractly, galerie frank elbaz, Dallas, USA.
Postwar: Art Between the Pacific and the Atlantic, 1945–1965, Haus der Kunst, Munich, Germany.
2016
Non-Aligned Modernity. Eastern-European Art from the Marinko Sudac Collection, FM Centro per l’Arte Contemporanea, Milan, Italy.
2015
Construction to Transmission: Art in Eastern Europe and Latin America 1960–1980, MoMA, New York City, USA.
Zig Zag, Hono-Lulu, Zürich, Switzerland.
Collection. Un rêve d’éternité, Frac Bretagne, Rennes, France.
Biens Publics, Musée Rath, Geneva, Switzerland.
Reflets, Centre d’Art contemporain Bouvet Ladubay, Saumur, France.
2014
Personal Cuts – Art Scene in Zagreb from 1950s to now, Carré d´art – Musée d´art contemporain de Nîmes, Nîmes, France.
The Mysterious Device Was Moving Forward, Longhouse Projects, New York City, USA.
Observations, Galerija Skuc, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
2013
The Present and Presence: Repetition 4 – Micro-political Situations, Museum of
Contemporary Art, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Une brève histoire de lignes, Centre Pompidou, Metz, France.
Section des stylites, MAMCO, Genève, Suisse.
Gorgona: Please Attend, Zack/Branicka, Berlin, Germany.
Transition Noir & Blanc, galerie Oniris, Rennes, France.
Knifer/Stupica, Academia moderna, Zagreb, Croatia.
2012
Scenes from Zagreb : Artist’s Publications of the New Art Practice, MoMA Library, New York City, USA.
Selected Secondary Market Investment Works, Rex Livingston Art Dealer, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Usudi se probati, Lauba, Zagreb, Croatia.
Apstrakcija – Modernizam i suvremenost, Galerija Klovićevi dvori, Zagreb, Croatia.
2011
Gorgona (…Knifer, Mangelos, Vanista…), galerie frank elbaz, Paris, France.
Mortel !, FRAC Basse-Normandie, curated by Mathieu Mercier, Caen, France.
Museum of Parallel Narratives, in the framework of L’Internationale, MACBA- Museu d’Art Conetmporani de Barcelona, curated by Zdenka Badovinac, Barcelona, Spain.
Mouvements, Abbaye, Annecy-le-Vieux, France.
2010
Changing the World, ARNDT, Berlin, Germany.
Les Promesses du Passé, curated by Christine Macel and Joanna Mytkowska, Centre Pompidou, Paris, France.
Listen to your Eyes, Ecole Supérieure d’art, Metz, France.
Die Leichtigkeit des Seins Teil 2, Dany Keller Galerie, Munich, Germany.
Modern Times: responding to chaos, Kettle’s Yard, Cambridge, UK.
2009
Printemps de Septembre, curated by Christian Bernard, Toulouse, France.
1/1 …… 1/100 – Editionen aus Deutschland, den Niederlanden und der Schweiz,
Gesellschaft für Kunst und Gestaltung, Bonn, Germany.
Minimal Shift, Galéria Jana Koniarka, Trnava, Slovakia.
Editionen der Galerie seit 1970, Dany Keller Galerie, Munich, Germany.
2008
Atelier, Edition Fanal, Paksi Képtár, Paks, Hungary.
Why hère is always somewhere else, Badischer Kunstveiren Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe, Germany.
Odsutni / Prisutni, The Gallery of Fine Arts, Split, Croatia.
As soon as I open my eyes I see a film, Muzeum Sztuki Nowoczesnej w Warszawie /
Museum of Modern Art, Warsaw, Poland.
The Rational Eye, Geometric, Optical, Kinetic and Programmed Art, International Centre of Graphic Arts (MGLC), Ljubljana, Slovenia.
bit international. [Nove] tendencije, Computer und visuelle Forschung, Zagreb 1961–1973, ZKM – Zentrum für Kunst und Medientechnologie Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe, Germany.
2007
Ligne B – Connexion aux Abattoirs, les Abattoirs de Toulouse, Toulouse, France.
Rückblende. Die Fotosamlung der Neuen Galerie Graz, Neue Galerie Graz,
Universalmuseum Joanneum, Graz, Austria.
White-Black, Vasarely Museum, Budapest, Hungary.
bit international – [Nove] Tendencije, Neue Galerie Graz, Universalmuseum Joanneum, Graz, Austria.
Die Neuen Tendenzen. Eine europäische Kuenstlerbewegung 1961-1973, Leopold Hoesch Museum, Düren, Germany.
2006
Au-delà de la géométrie (art construit, minimal, sériel), FRAC Limousin, Limoges, France.
Arteast Collection 2000+23, Museum of Modern Art Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Die Neuen Tendenzen, Museum für Konkrete Kunst, Ingolstadt, Germany.
Sammeln und Entdecken, Galerie Schrade & Blashofer, Karlsruhe, Germany.
Essence of Life Art, The State Russian Museum, Marble Palace, Saint Petersburg, Russia.
Kontakt – … aus der Sammlung der Erste Bank-Gruppe, Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig, MUMOK, Viena, Austria.
2005
Julije Knifer – Rémy Zaugg – In memoriam, Mamco – musée d´art moderne et contemporain, Genève, Switzerland.
East Art Museum, Karl-Ernst-Osthaus-Museum, Hagen, Germany.
Essence of Life – Essence of Art, Ludwig Museum, Museum of Contemporary Art Budapest, Budapest, Hungary.
Prague Biennale 2, Prague, Czech Republic.
2004
Beyond Geometry: Experiments in Form 1940s-70s, LACMA- Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, USA.
Galerie Oniris, Rennes, France.
Véra Molnar – Julije Knifer, Fondation pour l’Art Contemporain Claudine et Jean-Marc Salomon, Alex, France.
Image and Object, The Filip Trade Collection of Contemporary Art, Museum of Modern Art Dubrovnik, Dubrovnik, Croatia.
Passage d´Europe, Musée d’Art moderne de Saint-Etienne, Saint-Etienne, France.
François Morellet – Julije Knifer, Galerie Gisèle Linder, Basel, Switzerland.
2003
Collection FRAC Basse Normandie, Caen, France.
Musée de Nantes, Collection FRAC Bourgogne, Nantes, France.
Un choix dans les acquisitions récentes, FRAC- Fonds Régional d’Art Contemporain de la Region Centre, Bretagne, France.
Acquisitions, Le Ring, Nantes, France.
Le Diable Evidemment, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Brest, France.
2002
L’Art d’aujourd’hui, Musée de Grenoble, Grenoble, France.
Inauguration du Plateau, Espace d’Art Contemporain, Paris, France.
2001
Théâtre de la cruauté (Héautontimoroumenoï), Mamco – Musée d´Art Moderne et Contemporain, Genève, Switzerland.
Formes du simple 2, Mamco – Musée d´Art Moderne et Contemporain, Genève, Switzerland.
De Artaud … à Twombly, Centre Pompidou, Musée National d´Art Moderne, Paris, France.
49th International Art Exhibition Venice Biennale, Venice, Italy.
Oeuvres sur papier: Acquisitions 1996 – 2001, Centre Georges Pompidou – Musée National
d’Art moderne, Paris, France.
Bianco e nero, Vismara Arte, Milan, Italy.
Opposizione Croata: Julije Knifer – Ivan Picelj, Galleria Starter, Milan, Italy.
Confrontation and continuity of the New Tendencies, Annals, Poreč, Croatia.
EXAT 51 i Nove Tendencije, Centro Cultural, Cascais (Lisbon), Portugal.
2000
Aspekte/Positionen – 50 Jahren Kunst aus Mitteleuropa 1949-1999, Museum Moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig, Viena, Austria.
Art Concret, Espace de l’Art Concret, Mouans-Sartoux, France.
FRAC Bourgogne, Dijon, France.
Lignes de Conduite, Espace de l’Art concret, Mouans-Sartoux, France.
Kunstmuseum Lichtenstein, Vaduz, Lichtenstein.
1999
Fragments, Frac Bretagne, Lannion, France.
This is yesterday – Esto es ayer, Centro Andaluz de Arte Contemporaneo, Le Consortium,
Dijon, France.
Museum Moderne Kunst Stiftung, Ludwig, Viena, Austria.
1998
Le Dessin en Procès, Château d’Eau, Bourges, France.
Le Trésor, Le Consortium, Dijon, France.
Un Certain Classicisme, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Dole, France.
Abstraktion zwischen 1945 und 1959, Wilhelm-Hack Museum, Ludwigshafen am Rhein, Germany.
Le Consortium collectionne, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France.
1997
Made in France, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France.
Ainsi de Suite, Centre Régional d’Art Contemporain, Sète, France.
Reduction, Coddard de Fides Gallery, Perth, Australia.
Biennale Venice, Venice, Italy.
1996
Histoires de Blanc et Noir, Musée de Grenoble, Grenoble, France.
Dessins : nouvelles acquisitions 1992 – 1996, Centre Pompidou, Paris, France.
La collection du FRAC Bretagne, Rennes, France.
1995
Morceaux choisis du Fond National, Le Magasin, Grenoble, France.
1994
Europa-europa: das Jahrhundert der Avantgarde in Mittel- und Osteuropa, Kunsthalle, Bonn, Germany.
1993
Noir dessin, Centre Georges Pompidou, cabinet d’arts graphiques, Paris, France.
The Horse who Sings: Radical Art from Croatia, Museum of Contemporary Art, Sydney, Australia.
1992
Ernst Museum, Budapest, Hungary.
Manifeste, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France.
1991
Château d’Oiron, Oiron, France.
1990
Kunstverein, Salzburg, Germany.
Le Consortium (with Richard Paul Lohse), Dijon, France.
1988
Exhibition Space (with Haft and Pearson), London, UK.
1987
Panorama du XXe siècle, Musée de Grenoble, Grenoble, France.
Konkret Sieben, Kunsthaus, Nürnberg, Germany.
1983
Galerie d’art contemporain, Zagreb, Croatia.
1980
XVI Biennale, Sao Paolo, Brasil.
1976
XXXVII Venice Biennale, Venice, Italy.
1973
XIII Biennale, Sao Paolo, Brasil.
Contemporary Yugoslav Art, The National museum of Art, Tokyo and Kyoto, Japan.
1971
10 Künstler aus Zagreb: Neue Tendenz, Wilhelm Hack Museum, Ludwigshafen am Rhein, Germany.
1972
Contemporary Art in Yugoslavia, Mc Graw-III Inc., New York City, USA.
1966
Moderne Kroatische Kunst, Burgenländische Landesregierung, Eisenstadt, Austria.
1961
Nove tendencije, Zagreb, Croatia.
Art Abstrait Constructif International, Galerie Denise René, Paris, France.
Public collections
Museum of Contemporary Art Limited, Sydney, Australia.
Kontakt. The Art Collection of Erste Group, Wien, Austria.
Musée d’Art Contemporain de Montréal, Québec, Canada.
Museum of Contemporary Art, Zagreb, Croatia.
Centre Georges Pompidou – Musée National d’Art Moderne, Paris, France-
Collection Le Consortium, Dijon, France-
Espace de l’Art Concret, Château de Mouans-Sartoux, France-
Fond National d’Art Contemporain, Paris, France.
FRAC Auvergne, France.
FRAC Basse Normandie, France.
FRAC Bourgogne, France.
FRAC Bretagne, France.
Musée de Grenoble, France.
Musée d’art et d’histoire de Cholet, Cholet, France.
Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus, München, Germany.
Museum Folkwang, Essen, Germany.
Kunsthalle Nürnberg, Nürnberg, Germany.
Neuer Berliner Kunstverein, Berlin, Germany.
Wilhelm Hack Museum, Ludwigshafen am Rhein, Germany.
Kunstmuseum Mülheim an der Ruhr, Mülheim an der Ruhr, Germany.
Stiftung für konkrete Kunst, Reutlingen, Germany.
Kunstmuseum Lichtenstein, Lichtenstein.
Museum of Contemporary Art, Belgrade, Serbia.
MAMCO, Geneva, Switzerland.
Tate Collection, London, United Kingdom.
MoMA, collection of the Museum of Modern Art, new York City, USA.