Beschreibung:

32 Gerhard Richter Follow Grau signed, inscribed and dated 'Richter 2003 883-4' on the reverse oil on canvas 52 x 47 cm (20 1/2 x 18 1/2 in.) Painted in 2003.
Provenance Marian Goodman Gallery, New York Private Collection, United States Galerie Thomas Zander, Cologne Private Collection Phillips, New York, 14 May 2015, lot 48 Acquired at the above sale by the present owner Exhibited New York, Marian Goodman Gallery, Gerhard Richter Paintings from 2003-2005 , 17 November 2005 – 14 January 2006, p. 37 (illustrated) Literature A. Zweite, Gerhard Richter Catalogue Raisonné for the Paintings 1993-2004 , Düsseldorf/New York, 2005, no. 883-4 (illustrated) Catalogue Essay A titan of twentieth century art, Gerhard Richter’s reputation as a master of abstraction is conveyed through the exquisitely rendered steely surface of Grau (Grey) . Rejecting a dogmatic view of the world in black and white, Richter instead explores subtle shades of velvety grey in his 2003 canvas . Created using his iconic squeegee technique, Grau is exemplary of Richter’s exploration of grey as a platform for visual mediation. First experimenting with abstraction after the presentation of his renowned figurative series, 48 Portraits at the 1972 Venice Biennale, the present work provides a reflective microcosm, whereby the viewer’s eye is invited to explore the tonal variations of Richter’s slate-coloured work. The canvas’s deeply textured surface with its amalgamation of paint applied in a gestural chaos of directions demonstrates Richter’s artistic maturity in the adroit painterly finesse in Grau . From the smoky canvas, wisps of tone coalesce before the viewer’s eyes. Through the complex picture plane, Richter’s eternal return to the question of 'what painting still could and should do' is evident (Gerhard Richter quoted in Hans-Ulrich Obrist, ed., Gerhard Richter Text: Schriften und Interviews , Frankfurt, 1993, p. 106). Through the painterly use of light, Richter presents a beam of optimism. For, as Richter has stated, sustaining faith in art is one of the 'highest forms of hope' (Gerhard Richter quoted in Hans-Ulrich Obrist, ed., Gerhard Richter Text: Schriften und Interviews , Frankfurt, 1993, p. 93). Reflecting on his initial experimentations with a grey palette, Richter states: 'When I first painted a number of canvasses in grey all over, I did so because I did not know what to paint or what there might be to paint: so wretched a start could lead to nothing meaningful. As time went on, however, I observed differences of quality among the grey surfaces - and also that these betrayed nothing of the destructive motivation that lay behind them. The pictures began to teach me. By generalizing a personal dilemma, they resolved it. Destitution became a constructive statement; it became relative perfection, beauty and therefore painting' (Gerhard Richter in a letter to Edy de Wilde, 23 February 1975, in Gerhard Richter Text. Writings, Interviews and Letters 1961-2007, London, 2009, p. 91). Illuminating the left of the canvas in Grau , Richter applies a lighter shade, these brighter brushstrokes catching the viewer’s eye, like a glint on metallic sheen. As if crafted from metal, Grau continues the dialogue with Richter’s earlier Sheet Metal paintings, such as his 1988 canvas Tin (Blech) . Expertly traversing the natural and man-made in the present work, Richter’s use of light conveys both the properties of steel as well as the sunlight breaking through after a terrific storm. In this interplay of light and shade, Richter creates the high drama of an inky sky, the chiaroscuro coalescing to create a deeply evocative work, reminiscent of his 1969 seascape, Seestück (Welle) . Through Richter’s experimentation with abstraction he both elevates and reduces the mark of the painter’s hand, toying with a symbiosis between the medium of painting and the photographic process, as well as exploring the tension between collective and personal memory. Richter’s blurred surface greyscale palette in Grau evokes his body of nostalgic black and white painterly family photographs; Richter’s blurring technique in these works conveys th