Georg Lutz Rauschebart is a German artist. His painting in the East Side Gallery is a reminder of the crucial role that Mikhail Gorbachev, then president of the Soviet Union, played in the Peaceful Revolution and German reunification. No more is known about the artist.
Rauschebart’s painting depicts the former Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev driving towards the viewer. The steering wheel he is holding is made of a hammer and sickle, the symbols on the Soviet flag. The background resembles the Brandenburg Gate. With this painting, the artist highlighted the central role that Gorbachev played in ending the Cold War and accomplishing the unification of the two German states. In 2009 Günther Schaefer copied the painting for the East Side Gallery’s restoration.