Thomas Baumgärtel

Place: Köln

Born: 1960

Biography:

Thomas Baumgärtel, also known as Bananensprayer, is a German artist born in 1960 in Köln, Germany. He is best known for his signature banana graffiti, which he started painting on the doors of galleries and museums in the early 1990s as a way to mark the ones that he considered to be 'closed' to contemporary art. Baumgärtel's work is a commentary on the art world and its institutions, and his banana has become a symbol of rebellion and critique. In addition to his graffiti, Baumgärtel also works as a painter, using acrylic on canvas to create abstract compositions that often incorporate his signature banana motif. He has exhibited his work in galleries and museums around the world, and his art is held in numerous private and public collections.