Dimensions: support: 2005 x 2605 x 35 mm
Copyright: © Gerhard Richter | CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 DEED, Photo: Tate
Editor: This is Gerhard Richter's "St. John", a large, deeply textured oil painting. The striking use of colour makes me wonder about the artist's intentions. What can you tell me about this work? Curator: Look closely at Richter's process, the dragging of paint, the layering. How does the materiality itself, the viscosity of the oil and the tools employed, shape our understanding of the subject and Richter's artistic labor? Editor: I suppose the way the paint is dragged across the canvas does create a sense of unease, like something is being obscured. Curator: Exactly. And how does this relate to consumerism and the mass production of images? Is Richter commenting on the fleeting nature of images in contemporary society? Editor: That’s a perspective I hadn’t considered. Thanks, this was very insightful. Curator: Indeed. Examining the materials helps illuminate Richter’s commentary on modern image culture.
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St John belongs to a series called the ‘London Paintings’, each named after one of the chapels of Westminster Abbey. The titles are not meant to be descriptive, but refer merely to associations connected with the artist’s visits to London. Since 1980 Richter has made his abstract paintings by manipulating spatulas of different lengths, loaded with paint, across areas of the canvas. New layers of colour cover earlier ones. Richter’s inability to control the precise distribution of paint allows a degree of chance to determine the paintings’ final appearance. Gallery label, April 2007
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