Vermalung 1972

Gerhard Richter made this painting called Vermalung, which means something like ‘smearing’ in German, and looking at it I can see why! It’s all about the gesture, you know? Like, what does it mean to make these sweeping, overlapping marks with the brush? The paint looks thick, dragged across the surface almost aggressively. The color is so dark, almost monochromatic. What was Richter thinking? Maybe he was trying to obscure something, or maybe he was just exploring the materiality of paint itself. I like the way the strokes accumulate, creating a dense network of lines that both reveal and conceal. It reminds me of the work of other painters who are interested in process and chance, like Joan Mitchell or even some of the early abstract expressionists. Ultimately, painting is about this ongoing conversation, you know? Artists are always riffing off each other, pushing boundaries and challenging conventions.