- Paintings
- Atlas
- Editions
- Drawings
- Overpainted Photographs
- Oil on Paper
- Watercolours
- Artist's Books
- Prints
- Other
Microsites
These rarely-exhibited townscapes, numbered 224 in Gerhard Richter's catalogue raisonné [CR: 224/6-10, 17-18], share one characteristic: the motifs are reduced to just a few shades of grey, reminiscent of stencil printing.
The townscapes do not show the extensive road networks as in aerial photography [CR: 171, 175–177-3, 249–251], nor do they depict the clear geometrical order that characterises Richter's pictures of architectural models [CR: 217–219]. Instead the paintings show houses closely built together. The diversity of the buildings indicates the structure of a town or city that has grown over the years.
The architectural forms were greatly simplified by the artist. Richter joins together grey-coloured fields with quick and impasto brushwork, while he foregoes any detailed elaboration.
Although the buildings are depicted in perspective, it is the use of contrast that is most striking to the beholder: lighter shades stand out, whereas darker ones fade into the background. The perspective effect generated this way seems to be of more importance than the depicted motif itself.
Gerhard Richter confirms that this series of paintings is above all about painterly qualities and that identifying the location of what is depicted plays only a minor role: "towns and mountains from a bird's-eye view (abandonment of the conception of interesting content and illusionistic painting; a spot of paint should be a spot of paint, and the motif needn't have a message or allow for interpretation)."1
1 'Work Overview', 1968 in: Gerhard Richter: Text. Writings, Interviews and Letters 1961–2007, Thames & Hudson, London, 2009, p. 53
Notes prepared by editorial team
This artwork was shown in the following exhibitions:
This artwork is included in the following publications:
Publisher
Details
ISBN
Language
Category
...
Publisher
Editor
Details
ISBN
Language
Category
Exhibitions
...
Publisher
Editor
Details
ISBN
Language
Category
Exhibitions
...
Publisher
Details
ISBN
Language
Category
Exhibitions
- Gerhard Richter: Panorama, Tate Modern, London, UK, 2011
- Gerhard Richter: Panorama, Neue und Alte Nationalgalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany, 2011
- Gerhard Richter: Panorama, Musée National d'Art Moderne, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris, France, 2011
...
Publisher
Details
ISBN
Language
Category
...
Publisher
Details
ISBN
Language
Category
In this publication, eminent American scholar and curator Robert Storr offers an authoritative consideration of September, Richter’s 2005 painting made in response to the attacks on the WorldTrade Center of 11 September 2001,
...Publisher
Details
ISBN
Language
Category
Gerhard Richter has been widely regarded as a publicity shy artist. However, the biography Gerhard Richter. A Life in Painting gives an insight into Richter’s personal history as well as into the development of his artistic œuvre.
...Publisher
Details
ISBN
Language
Category
Exhibitions
- Gerhard Richter: Abstract Paintings, Haus der Kunst, Munich, Germany, 2008
- Gerhard Richter: Abstract Paintings, Museum Ludwig, Cologne, Germany, 2008
The book was published on the occasion of the exhibition Gerhard Richter. Abstrakte Bilder at Museum Ludwig, Cologne and Haus der Kunst, Munich. The exhibitions were dedicated to Gerhard Richter’s abstract pictures
...Publisher
Details
ISBN
Language
Category
Exhibitions
The book was published on the occasion of the exhibition Gerhard Richter. Abstrakte Bilder at Museum Ludwig, Cologne and Haus der Kunst, Munich. The exhibitions were dedicated to Gerhard Richter’s abstract pictures
...Publisher
Details
ISBN
Language
Category
Exhibitions
Gerhard Richter. Portraits is the first publication that focuses solely on Richter’s portraits, many of which have now gained both recognition and veneration across the globe.
...Publisher
Details
ISBN
Language
Category
Exhibitions
...
Publisher
Details
ISBN
Language
Category
...
Publisher
Details
ISBN
Language
Category
Exhibitions
...
Publisher
Details
ISBN
Language
Category
Exhibitions
- Gerhard Richter: Paintings 1962–1985, Museum moderner Kunst/Museum des 20. Jahrhunderts, Vienna, Austria, 1986
- Gerhard Richter: Paintings 1962–1985, Städtische Kunsthalle Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany, 1986
- Gerhard Richter: Paintings 1962–1985, Nationalgalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany, 1986
- Gerhard Richter: Paintings 1963–1986, Kunsthalle Bern, Bern, Switzerland, 1986
...
This artwork is shown or mentioned in the following videos: