Page 124 - B-ALL 54 ENG

The «October 18, 1977» cycle, inspired by the tragic end of the Red Army
Faction, marks a pivotal moment. These fifteen canvases, in which faces and bo-
dies barely appear before dissolving, convey the weight of recent German history.
Far from any pathos, Richter establishes an atmosphere of silence and gravity
that resonates deeply with collective memory.
Over the following decades, Richter multiplied his explorations.
His large abstractions from the 2000s, grouped under the title «Cage,» pay ho-
mage to the American composer John Cage and stand out for their colorful and
rhythmic intensity.
His digital experiments, such as the «Strip» series, create computer-derived color
bands, extending his research into randomness and combinatorics.
His glass and mirror works, meanwhile, shift the question of painting to space,
transforming the viewer’s experience into a play of reflections and transparencies.
The highlight of the Paris exhibition remains the installation «Birkenau» (2014).
Starting with four photographs clandestinely taken in an extermination camp,
Richter repainted and then covered these images until they were almost comple-
tely erased.
This radical gesture, both erasure and memory, underscores the impossibility of
representing horror, while confronting the viewer with their own position in the
face of history. The arrangement of mirrors hung opposite each other further en-
hances this experience, transforming the viewer into an integral part of the work.
Gerhard Richter, Onkel Rudi [Uncle Rudi], 1965 (CR 85)
Oil on canvas, 87 x 50 cm, Lidice Memorial Collection, |
Czech Republic © Gerhard Richter 2025 (18102025)