Helmut Ditsch

Helmut Ditsch (born July 6, 1962) is an Argentine painter. Ditsch's work focuses on extreme natural phenomena such as mountains, desert, ice, and water.

He was born at in Villa Ballester, in the province of Buenos Aires, to grandparents from Austria and Germany, including northern Italian origins, who had immigrated to Argentina in 1920. The early death of the artist’s mother, and with it the theme of life and death, impacted his work. At the age of eight he was introduced to the two vast Argentine landscapes, the Pampas grasslands and the Andes mountain range, which have influenced his life and work. After graduating from Hölters Schule he started to pursue a career as a painter

In 1983, Ditsch began working as a freelance artist. In 1988, he moved to Vienna, Austria, to begin his education at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna. He concluded his studies in painting in 1993 and graduated with honors. In the following year he opened his studio near Vienna. Around this time Helmut Ditsch became acquainted with and befriended Italian mountaineer Reinhold Messner in Meran, with whom he has since collaborated on numerous occasions.

In order to study the glacial ice, Helmut Ditsch undertook a journey in 1995 to Patagonia. In 1998 he spent many weeks isolated in the Austrian Alps to study for his painting Das Gebirge ("The Mountains"). In 2000, he moved his studio to Ireland, where he has lived and worked since. In 2006, Helmut Ditsch presented his book The Triumph of Nature as part of a solo exhibition at the Feria International del Libro Show in Argentina.

In 2008, he founded the HELMUT DITSCH FAN FABRICA DE ARTE NACIONAL, a transparent laboratory for art, music, philosophy and high technology design.

In 2010, the sale of the painting Das Meer II for US$865.000 made Ditsch the most expensive artist in Argentina. The same year he began his exhibition tour "GIRA NACIONAL Y POPULAR" (so far in: Santa Fe, Paraná, Rosario, Vienna, Mar del Plata, Mendoza). The exhibitions have an inclusive character and take place at public spaces with free entry.

In 2016 the painting Cosmigonon was sold for the record price of US$1.500.000.

...
Wikipedia