Gerhard Richter is a contemporary German artist who specializes in photography, photo realistic paintings (projecting a photo on canvass and then painting it), and glass pieces. The exhibition at the Kunstforum in Vienna shows only the first two with a focus on landscapes. Not sure if I would have recognized some of them as landscapes but I trust the curator.
landscape @Gerhard Richter
What really helped me get through the exhibition and enjoy it was our guide. I am not really into modern art and have usually problems understanding what the artist wants to tell us. Mostly I just take it at fair value and either like it or not. Astonishingly I enjoyed Richter’s work. Especially his projected photographs turned into paintings have a David Hamilton blur like quality. Looking at the them is kind of dreamy.
blue sky and clouds @Gerhard Richter
Or this stormy sea. In my mind I see myself standing at the shore and looking out. I almost feel the wind tearing at the my clothes and lifting my hair.
stormy sea @Gerhard Richter
But there were also other pieces. Photographs which had paint pasted over it and then spread with a ruler (or so it looked to me). One was so large that it covered a long wall. I took a close-up of it because I like to show you his technique.
paint over a photograph @Gerhard Richter
It’s also impressive when you see it from further away and realize it’s just a part of something bigger.
just the left side of a large painting @Gerhard Richter
Anyway, I am definitely not the right person to talk about art. But I really enjoyed the exhibition, and the guide explained Gerhard Richter’s art and success in detail. But whatever he wants to tell you with his pieces, is up to you. You look at this art and see what you want. Isn’t that what art is about, to open your horizon? Currently all museums are closed but you can see some of his paintings online. Yours, Pollybert
Gerhard Richter exhibition
Bank Austria Kunstforum Wien
1010 Wien, Freyung 8
Tel: +43 1 5373326
Email: office@kunstforumwien.at
01.10.2020 – 14.02.2021
https://www.kunstforumwien.at/en
gazing at art @Gerhard Richter
