Gerhard Richter: Sils

Gerhard Richter. Bücher is the first publication that exclusively addresses Gerhard Richter’s artist’s books. Starting with a brief introduction to the history of the genre, Dieter Schwarz proceeds to analyse Richter’s diverse publications, which don’t necessarily stand out with extravagant covers, but are versatile in dealing with different subjects and their presentation. The aspect of reproduction and the processing of graphical material, which plays a crucial role in Richter’s works in general, can also be found in most of his books. Schwarz adjudges Eis and Wald a special status, as they are not derived from image details like War Cut or Patterns, but consist of independent series of pictures.

In the interview with Richter, Hans Ulrich Obrist, who also collaborated with him on a number of books, discusses the artist’s books chronologically and raises detailed questions about the development and context of all of Richter’s publications. The interviewer talks to Richter about his ideals and guiding principles in painting. Obrist is mainly interested in the structure and arrangement of the books, which demonstrate a carefully conceived composition.

Gerhard Richter’s artist's book Sils is named after the Swiss village of the same name, which he visited regularly for many years. Richter has approached the Sils landscape from various angles with a series of overpainted photographs. The photographs are mostly arranged as pairs, and are entitled Fextal, Piz Lunghi, Piz Surlej, Piz Corvatsch or Silsersee after different places within the region. Owing to the overpainting and their orientation – some of them are printed upside down – it is difficult to recognise the different locations.

The book was first published on the occasion of a Gerhard Richter exhibition at Nietzsche-Haus in Sils in 1992, and has been reprinted repeatedly since.

Edited by Hans Ulrich Obrist, with a text by Peter André Bloch.

Gerhard Richter’s artist's book Sils is named after the Swiss village of the same name, which he visited regularly for many years. Richter has approached the Sils landscape from various angles with a series of overpainted photographs. The photographs are mostly arranged as pairs, and are entitled Fextal, Piz Lunghi, Piz Surlej, Piz Corvatsch or Silsersee after different places within the region. Owing to the overpainting and their orientation – some of them are printed upside down – it is difficult to recognise the different locations.

The book was first published on the occasion of a Gerhard Richter exhibition at Nietzsche-Haus in Sils in 1992, and has been reprinted repeatedly since.

Edited by Hans Ulrich Obrist, with a text by Peter André Bloch.