‘Modern Freskos’: Paul Kuntze’s first solo exhibition in India

Black Cube Gallery, Hauz Khas, presents Modern Freskos, the first India solo of Berlin-based contemporary artist Paul Kuntze, on view from December 5 to 27. Curated by Sanya Malik, the exhibition introduces a young painter whose practice reimagines Baroque ceiling frescoes through a contemporary, intuitive language.

Kuntze’s works draw from the celestial drama of historic churches and palaces — those vast, illusionistic portals into divine space — yet he allows intuition to interrupt classical structure. Figures appear and disappear like memories resurfacing from another century. “I try to create something that reminds the viewer of original frescos,” he says, “but with intuitive parts in it, like the figures, to confront the viewers with their own creativity.”

This tension between precision and spontaneity becomes the pulse of his canvases. The works feel both ancient and alive, as if pieces of a celestial ceiling have floated gently down to earth. “History is not something fixed,” says curator Sanya Malik. “In Paul’s hands, it becomes a living medium — one that breathes again.”

When: December 5–27; 12 PM – 6 PM 

Where: Black Cube Gallery, G12A Hauz Khas, New Delhi