In 1961, Richter and his wife Ema defected to West Germany from the increasingly repressive GDR. They stayed with a friend, Reinhard Graner, in Düsseldorf for the first few weeks. Initially Richter considered moving to Munich, but following advice from Graner chose to settle in Düsseldorf. The city’s Staatliche Kunstakademie [Düsseldorf Art Academy] had a considerable reputation and featured largely in Richter’s final decision. Despite having already studied art at the Dresden[...]