Spray paint, lacquer and Oil on canvas. Signed, dated and titled, with a small sketch on the reverse. 220 x 180 cm.
[KT].
- One of only four black-and-white paintings in the artist's oeuvre that mark a first significant retrospective point in Richter's creation. - A large-format work from Richter's abstract creative phase, during which he established himself among the leading contemporary German painters in the 1990s. - Made in the context of his first participation in an exhibition in the USA. - Richter's works are part of important collections such as the Museum of Modern Art, New York, Centre Georges-Pompidou, Paris, and the Städel Museum, Frankfurt am Main.
LITERATURE: Eva Meyer-Hermann (ed.), Daniel Richter - Bilder von früh bis heute, Berlin 2023, p. 74 (illustrated on p. 78).

Scorpio Rising, Contemporary Fine Arts, Berlin, April 13 - May 8, 1999. Mozart on Television: New Painting from Germany, Deitch Projects, New York, June 1 - August 6, 1999. Daniel Richter: A major survey, Denver Art Museum, Denver, October 4, 2008 - January 11, 2009

Contemporary Fine Arts, Berlin (with two labels and several stamps). Private collection (acquired from the above in 1999)

“Wenn wer dt. Meister oder wer wird deutscher Meister” (If anyone German champion or who will be German champion) dates from Daniel Richter's early creative phase and reveals his background in the Hamburg punk and graffiti scene of the 1990s. The imposing large-scale format incorporates a range of different materials, including spray paint, varnish, and oil, making this work a compelling testament to Richter's early forays into abstract painting and the influence of anarchist impulses stemming from his time in the Hamburg squatter scene and his involvement with the anti-fascist movement. Daniel Richter was intensely devoted to abstraction at the beginning of his career in the 1990s. He studied at the University of Fine Arts of Hamburg under Werner Büttner and worked as Albert Oehlen's assistant. This period had a lasting influence on Richter's work. In “Wenn wer dt. Meister oder wer wird deutscher Meister”, the connection between complex figurations and ornamental structures in a tense dialogue with gestural, seemingly random color explosions becomes evident. The dynamic composition of this work opens up like a psychedelic cosmos, hovering between the aesthetic worlds of graffiti and random abstraction. The young Richter, who has his roots in the Hamburg punk scene where he designed record covers for the progressive left-wing label Buback, expresses his enthusiasm for urban subcultures and poster art in the present work. The anarchistic energy that is part and parcel of Richter's artistic approach reveals itself immediately: exuberant colors that break the pictorial space and defy every convention. “Wenn wer dt. Meister oder wer wird deutscher Meister” is an abstract mesh of colors and an ironic commentary on German society and its popular culture. Here, Richter deals critically yet playfully with questions of identity and belonging in a typical manner. The title - the ‘German champion’ question - can be understood in a sporting and a nationalist context and leaves room for various interpretations. The period around 1999 marked a decisive turning point for Richter: the transition from pure abstraction to an increasingly figurative pictorial language emerged during this creative phase. Although figurative elements can not be recognized, the shift toward figuration is already evident. This ambivalence and complexity, which continues to characterize Richter's work until today, is a hallmark of his oeuvre. Richter often ironically describes his works as “insanely annoying”; however, the awareness of the material that he expressed in his early “klecksen” (blotches) is the prelude to an intensive examination of color and form that makes him one of the most influential artists of his generation. [KT]

A vibrant and dynamic composition, in good condition. Isolated areas with tiny superficial color flaking, a slightly larger area in the lower margin with chipping of the uppermost color layer (approx. 1 x 2 cm). Isolated tiny areas showing faint craquelure. The condition report was compiled in daylight and with the help of a UV light source to the best of our knowledge and belief.