Jonas Burgert is one of the most prominent voices in contemporary figurative painting. Since his studies at the Berlin University of the Arts in the 1990s, he has cultivated a distinctive pictorial repertoire that oscillates between dream and allegory, the real and the mythical world. His works, mostly monumental in scale, are populated by enigmatic figures whose bodies, costumes, and actions are depicted in a dramatic setting.

The 2006 work “Bergung II” is a prime example of Burgert’s ability to translate existential questions into complex pictorial spaces. The composition reveals itself like a stage: figures act in different spatial planes, their relationships remain undefined, but their gestures are intensely physical.
The title “Bergung” – lifting, rescuing, or salvaging – refers to an ambivalent action between violence and care, between loss and hope. Burgert's painting is characterized by a deep examination of the human condition, the fragility and failure of humans in a world that has become fragile.
Formally, he combines expressive color with the Old Masters' glazing technique, lending his figures an almost sculptural presence. As in many of his works, a surreal scene emerges that is at once timeless and profoundly contemporary—a kind of painted philosophy on being, becoming, and perishing.

“Bergung II” falls within the creative phase in which Burgert gained international recognition. In 2005, he participated in the Venice Biennale, followed shortly thereafter by exhibitions at the Saatchi Gallery in London and the Hamburger Kunsthalle. The work reflects Burgert's characteristic combination of psychological depth and scenic density, a combination that has characterized his oeuvre since the 2000s. “Bergung II” exemplifies Burgert's artistic credo: to show people caught between the abyss and redemption—an existential drama written in the language of painting.