Cologne Beggars III (Kölner Bettler III) 1972

Sigmar Polke's "Cologne Beggars III" is a photograph that's been pushed, pulled, and processed to the point where it teeters between reality and something else. The palette is almost exclusively monochrome, like a memory fading in the light. The surface has a ghostly quality, with areas burned out or washed away, creating a sense of ethereal transience. I'm drawn to the figure on the left, clutching a shopping bag. It's hard to make out her face – she's part of the flow, another face in the crowd. The textures are so odd, that it almost feels like a photorealistic painting. Polke was always experimenting, playing with chance and embracing imperfection, like a mischievous trickster. I see echoes of Gerhard Richter in Polke's blurring and distortion, that shared interest in questioning the nature of representation, but also a sense of humour that feels more akin to someone like Martin Kippenberger. Art's not about answers, it's about embracing the questions, the doubts, and the beautiful messiness of it all.