The work of Max A. Wagner is the reflection of his search for , depth and stability. That search intensified in 1996. Waiting for his flight to America he wrote in his dairy: ‘I longed for this day for 27 years.’ The day of freedom, not falling in line anymore, daring to deviate from the mainstream, admitting you are an artist. Until then he did what was expected. He studied law and would eventually become a lawyer, although this prospect didn’t make him happy. In 1996, just before the finish line, he dropped out of law school and started his journey which led him at first to America, Australia and New Zealand. He wrote poetry and worked odd jobs for his livelihood. In 1998 his trip seemed to come to an abrupt stop on a cycling tour through Australia due to a Ross River Virus infection, which is a malaria like tropical illness. Instead of standstill his almost-death experience and the consequences of his illness became a new direction, a turning point. With the little energy he had left he started making frames from found materials with the goal of selling them on flea markets. Once the first frames were finished the awareness manifested: I want to fill them. He bought paint and canvas and a new adventure as a visual artist was born. 

How does an artwork emerge? With intuition, says Max Wagner. He sees the structure and the colours of the work before it is realised. Once the first colour is chosen  he starts painting directly on the canvas. The image of the end result is pretty much in his head, the journey towards it can take months though. Wagner: ‘I start working around six in the morning knowing that I have only about four hours to compress my energy into my work as the consequences of the virus are still present up to date! That allows me literally no time for superficiality, neither in my work nor in my private view on life. Every piece of art starts with intuition, but after that I constantly think how I can realise the image I have in my head. Whilst I am painting, a lot of other things happen around me. Certain things can become part of my work, and at the same time another piece of art work can emerge from it. Leftovers can lead to a photograph and or a mixed media artwork. So basically spoken the remains of an major oil painting for example can become part of the creative process by intuitive observation.’ 

And A Moment expresses the very special experienced “moments” of inner love between my fiancé and myself.’ From afar it looks almost like one colour, up close you see the movement of different colours flowing together.. Max Wagner also wrote a poem about this very painting: