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Notes
The portrait-format painting Cell is part of the series October 18, 1977, in which Gerhard Richter approaches the German terrorist group Red Army Faction (RAF) in an artistic manner. It shows the deserted prison cell of one of the leaders of the RAF, Andreas Baader, who was arrested in June 1972 in Frankfurt am Main and found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in his cell at Stuttgart-Stammheim prison on 18th October 1977.
The picture has a distinct vertical division in the centre: floor-to-ceiling bookshelves cover the right side, lined with books. A light-coloured wall dominates the left side of the image. A dark coat hangs over the door leading to the bathroom of the cell. In contrast to the other paintings from the series, this work is defined by conspicuous vertical blurring.
All the paintings within the series October 18, 1977 are based on photographic source images, in this case a police photograph taken following the discovery of Baader’s suicide and published in the German magazine Stern in 1980. Additional details are apparent in the source photograph: a triangular red flag hanging next to the book shelves, and numerous objects, amongst them books and a typewriter, placed on the floor in front of the shelves.
Two edited copies of the photograph can be found in Gerhard Richter's Atlas [Sheet: 470], in which he collected many of his source images. Both copies are blurred, which makes clear that the details mentioned above were of lesser importance to the artist's idea for the painting.
In contrast to the paintings Man Shot Down 1 and 2 [CR: 669/1-2], which depict the dead Andreas Baader, Cell refers to his everyday life in prison. Although his personal effects cannot be identified clearly, the numerous books in particular reflect Baader's intellectual background and the RAF's attempts to underpin its politically-motivated actions with the help of ideological materials.
Gerhard Richter repeatedly pointed out the danger which lies in placing one’s trust in ideologies. In reference to the October 18, 1977 pictures, Richter speaks of digression in an ideological sense: "a leave-taking from a specific doctrine of salvation and, beyond that, from the illusion that unacceptable circumstances of life can be changed by this conventional expedient of violent struggle (this kind of revolutionary thought and action is futile and passé)." (Notes, 1989 in: Gerhard Richter: Text. Writings, Interviews and Letters 1961–2007, Thames & Hudson, London, 2009, p. 213) Thus, the painting Cell can be understood as a manifestation of a failure which resulted from a misguided ideology.
Notes prepared by editorial team -
Collection
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York, USA
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Exhibitions
- Gerhard Richter: Panorama
Musée National d'Art Moderne, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France June 06, 2012 September 24, 2012
- Gerhard Richter: Panorama
Neue und Alte Nationalgalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany February 12, 2012 May 13, 2012
- Gerhard Richter: Panorama
Tate Modern, London, UK October 06, 2011 January 08, 2012
- Gerhard Richter. Bilder einer Epoche
Gerhard Richter: Images of an Era
Bucerius Kunst Forum, Hamburg, Germany February 05, 2011 May 15, 2011
- Gerhard Richter. 18. Oktober 1977
Gerhard Richter: October 18, 1977
Galerie Neue Meister, Albertinum, Dresden, Germany March 19, 2005 January 02, 2006
- Das MoMa in Berlin. Meisterwerke aus dem Museum of Modern Art, New York
MoMA in Berlin: Masterpieces from the Museum of Modern Art, New York
Neue Nationalgalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany February 20, 2004 September 19, 2004
- Gerhard Richter: 40 Years of Painting
Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington D.C., USA February 27, 2003 May 18, 2003
- Gerhard Richter: 40 Years of Painting
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA), San Francisco, USA October 11, 2002 January 14, 2003
- Gerhard Richter: 40 Years of Painting
The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, USA June 14, 2002 September 14, 2002
- Gerhard Richter: 40 Years of Painting
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York, USA February 14, 2002 May 20, 2002
- Open Ends
The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York, USA September 28, 2000 March 04, 2001
- Szenenwechsel XIII
Change of Scene XIII
Museum für Moderne Kunst (MMK), Frankfurt am Main, Germany January 30, 1998 May 10, 1998
- Deutschlandbilder. Kunst aus einem geteilten Land
Images of Germany: Art from a Divided Country
Martin-Gropius-Bau, Berlin, Germany September 07, 1997 January 11, 1998
- Szenenwechsel IX
Change of Scene IX
Museum für Moderne Kunst (MMK), Frankfurt am Main, Germany January 31, 1996 May 12, 1996
- Gerhard Richter – Paintings
The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, Israel September 19, 1995 December 03, 1995
- Public Information: Desire, Disaster, Document
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA), San Francisco, USA January 18, 1995 April 30, 1995
- Gerhard Richter
Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid, Spain June 07, 1994 August 22, 1994
- Gerhard Richter
Moderna Museet, Stockholm, Sweden March 12, 1994 May 08, 1994
- Gerhard Richter. Malerei 1962–1993
Gerhard Richter: Painting 1962–1993
Kunst- und Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Bonn, Germany December 10, 1993 February 13, 1994
- Gerhard Richter. Peinture
Gerhard Richter: Painting
Musée d'art moderne de la Ville de Paris, Paris, France September 23, 1993 November 21, 1993
- Eröffnungsausstellung
Inaugural Exhibition
Museum für Moderne Kunst (MMK), Frankfurt am Main, Germany June 06, 1991 January 12, 1992
- Gerhard Richter 1988/89
Museum Boymans-van Beuningen, Rotterdam, The Netherlands October 15, 1989 December 03, 1989
- Gerhard Richter. 18. Oktober 1977
Gerhard Richter: October 18, 1977
Portikus, Frankfurt am Main, Germany April 29, 1989 June 11, 1989
- Gerhard Richter. 18. Oktober 1977
Gerhard Richter: October 18, 1977
Museum Haus Esters, Krefeld, Germany February 12, 1989 April 09, 1989
- Gerhard Richter: Panorama
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Videos
This artwork is shown in the following exhibition videos:
- Gerhard Richter: Panorama, Nationalgalerie, Berlin, Germany, 2012
- Images of an Era, Bucerius Kunst Forum, Hamburg, Germany, 2011
This artwork is mentioned in the following talks:
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Literature
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Schampers, Karel / Tilroe, Anna / Buchloh, Benjamin H. D.
Gerhard Richter 1988/89 Museum Boymans-van Beuningen, Rotterdam, 1989 Mentioned: p. 161Discussed: pp. 9, 10, 11, 12, 16, 17, 29, 30, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41Illustrated: p. 95 (colour) -
Zweite, Armin
Gerhard Richter. Atlas Verlag Fred Jahn, München, 1989 Mentioned: p. 10 -
Butin, Hubertus
Zu Richters Oktober-Bildern Verlag der Buchhandlung Walther König, Köln, 1991 Discussed: p. 18Illustrated: p. 18 -
Obrist, Hans Ulrich / Pelzer, Birgit / Tosatto, Guy
Gerhard Richter. 100 Pictures Hatje Cantz, Ostfildern-Ruit, 1996 Mentioned: p. 148 -
Obrist, Hans Ulrich / Pelzer, Birgit / Tosatto, Guy
Gerhard Richter. 100 Bilder Hatje Cantz Verlag, Ostfildern-Ruit, 1996 Mentioned: p. 150 -
Elger, Dietmar
Gerhard Richter. Maler DuMont, Köln, 2002 Mentioned: pp. 406, 425, 430Discussed: pp. 122, 356, 366, 377Illustrated: p. 367 -
Storr, Robert
Gerhard Richter. Forty Years of Painting The Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY, 2002 Mentioned: p. 76Illustrated: p. 215 (colour) -
Storr, Robert
Gerhard Richter. Malerei Hatje Cantz Verlag, Ostfildern-Ruit, 2002 Mentioned: p. 75Illustrated: p. 215 (colour) -
Storr, Robert
Gerhard Richter. Doubt and Belief in Painting The Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY, 2003 Mentioned: pp. 117, 118, 198, 243, 245, 246Illustrated: p. 193 -
Friedel, Helmut
Gerhard Richter. Atlas Verlag der Buchhandlung Walther König, Köln, 2006 Mentioned: pp. 8, 13, 14 -
Wilmes, Ulrich / Buchloh, Benjamin H. D. / Söntgen, Beate / Stemmrich, Gregor
Gerhard Richter. Abstrakte Bilder Hatje Cantz Verlag, Ostfildern-Ruit, 2008 Mentioned: p. 33 -
Wilmes, Ulrich / Buchloh, Benjamin H. D. / Söntgen, Beate / Stemmrich, Gregor
Gerhard Richter. Large Abstracts Hatje Cantz Verlag, Ostfildern-Ruit, 2008 Mentioned: p. 33 -
Elger, Dietmar / Roth, Martin / Stange, Eva-Maria
Gerhard Richter. Porträt Dr. Knobloch (Patrimonia 344) Kulturstiftung der Länder in Verbindung mit dem Gerhard Richter Archiv, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen, Dresden, 2009 Mentioned: p. 30
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Schampers, Karel / Tilroe, Anna / Buchloh, Benjamin H. D.