Contemporary painter Martin Assig (German, b.1959) works primarily in encaustic to create his works, which often involve collaged patterns, Folk Art motifs, and text. Assig works in a consciously naïve style. Many of his works are “overpaintings,” in which he has painted over artworks found in thrift stores, allowing some of the original work to show through. Assig also makes sculptures shaped like architectural structures and decorated in fantastical patterns or bright colors. He has had solo exhibitions at Galerie Frank Schlag in Essen, Germany (2002), Galerie Vidal Saint-Phalle in Paris (2002 and 2005), Laurent Delaye Gallery in London (2002), Galerie Volker Diehl in Berlin (2002, 2004, and 2008), Neues Museum Weserburg in Bremen, Germany (2002), Michael Kohn Gallery in Los Angeles (2004 and 2005), and Galerie Tanit in Munich (2003 and 2007). His work is represented in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York. He lives and works in Berlin and Brädikow, Germany.