Gerhard Richter - What If?
Where to begin with writing about Richter, for me he is a true master. His paintings challenge the way that we view the world, sometimes subtly and sometimes profoundly. His photo paintings with their meticulously blurred edges deconstruct the idea of the photograph while still referencing the photograph. I the images with the photographic language and note the softness asking me what is real and what is a construction. The same question applies with all of his work. His slightly blurred landscapes provide the same sense as do the monumental abstracts with their scrapings, cuttings and smudging of paint across the canvas. His work alludes to something more than can be seen. In the case of his 2005 work September the smudging of paint alludes to the cloud of smoke from the attacks on the world trade centre in 2001. Walk, also from 2005 has echoes of Saul Leiter’s colour photography with its visual obstructions. In his overpainted photos he is masking out objects, people, subjects and it leaves me wondering ‘what if’? All of Richter’s work inspires me with great curiosity and the question - what if?
