Gerhard Richter (B.1932), Abstraktes Bild

Gerhard Richter (B.1932), Abstraktes Bild. photo courtesy Sotheby's

signed, dated 1992 and numbered 767-1 on the reverse, oil on canvas, 62 by 62cm.; 24 3/8 by 24 3/8 in. Estimate 250,000—350,000 GBP. Lot Sold 589,250 GBP

PROVENANCE: Marian Goodman Gallery, New York
Acquired directly from the above by the present owner

LITERATURE AND REFERENCES: Angelika Thill, et al., Gerhard Richter Catalogue Raisonné: 1962 - 1993, Vol. III, Ostfildern-Ruit, 1993, p. 138, no. 767-1, illustrated in colour

NOTE: '22 September 1992. Scraping off. For about a year now, I have been unable to do anything in my painting but scrape off, pile on and then remove again. In this process I don't actually reveal what was beneath. If I wanted to do that, I would have to think what to reveal (figurative pictures or signs or patterns); that is, pictures that might as well be produced direct. It would also be something of a symbolic trick: bringing to light the lost, buried pictures, or something to that effect. The process of applying, destroying and layering only serves to achieve a more varied technical repertoire in picture-making.' Gerhard Richter cited in: Hans-Ulrich Obrist, Ed., Gerhard Richter, The Daily Practice of Painting: Writings 1962-1993, Cambridge MA. 1995, p. 245

Sotheby's. Contemporary Art Day Auction, 16 Feb 11, London www.sothebys.com