Imi Knoebel
* 1940
Klaus Wolf Knoebel, alias Imi Knoebel, was born in Dessau in 1940. In 1961 he began his studies at the Werkkunstschule Darmstadt under the tutelage of former Bauhaus student Prof. Hoffmann-Lederer. There, Knoebel met Rainer Giese (1942–1974), two years his junior, with whom he developed a strong friendship. In the years that followed, both presented their artwork under the name of Imi, later moving to Düsseldorf together in 1964. There they joined the class of Joseph Beuys at the art academy until 1971; their fellow students included, among others, Jörg Immendorff, Blinky Palermo, Reiner Ruthenbeck, Katharina Sieverding. Knoebel developed a close bond with Blinky Palermo (1943–1977), which would also eventually influence his artistic career. Today Imi Knoebel lives and works in Düsseldorf.