Beschreibung:

Albert Oehlen Follow Untitled signed and dated 'A. Oehlen '90' lower right blue ink on paper 127 x 97 cm (50 x 38 1/4 in.) Painted in 1990.
Provenance Galerie Gisela Capitain, Cologne Acquired from the above by the present owner Catalogue Essay A reoccurring motif throughout Albert Oehlen’s extensive and divergent oeuvre, the tree motif acts as a conceptual foundation upon which the artist developed a profound reflection of representation and abstraction. Simplified in their composition, the present works contain bold signifiers, such as a thick trunk and tangled branches, which mirror the twisting roots below. The absence of background liberates the trees from their natural setting in a traditional landscape painting. Instead the forms float within the expanse of the picture plane. Oehlen’s characteristic shift from figuration is further emphasised by the monochrome colour palette, the trees are demarcated using thick expressive brushstrokes demonstrative of the artist’s preference to portray the process by which artworks are made. The limited palette prevents any tonal distraction and encourages the spectator to enter into a state of sublimity, triggered by the organic tree forms. Concerned with the subjectivity of aesthetics, the artist notes, ‘what I see are unbearably ugly tatters, which are then transformed at the last moment, as if by magic, into something beautiful’ (Albert Oehlen quoted in ‘Albert Oehlen im Gespräch mit Wilfried Dickhoff und Martin Prinzhorn’, Wilfried Dickhoff, ed., Kunst Heute 7 , Cologne, 1991, p. 78). In the present lots, the tree is presented as an experimental subject, which Oehlen explored as a parameter to test the boundaries between abstraction and figuration. Oehlen’s tree paintings track his artistic investigations exploring differing notions of perception, a journey the artist first embarked upon in 1988 together with friend and fellow artist Martin Kippenberger Devoutly focused upon following abstraction, the artist asserted ‘I thought that art history went from figurative to abstract. And I should do the same. I should have the same development in my life as art history’, (Albert Oehlen quoted in Glenn O’Brien, ‘Albert Oehlen’, Interview , May 2009, p. 106). Precursors to the significant and esteemed Elevator Paintings , the link between these bodies of work was aptly highlighted in the Gagosian show, Elevator Paintings: Trees (28 February – 15 April 2017). The Elevator Paintings presented the artist’s absolute transition into the realm of abstract art through his tree paintings. The present works, therefore, mark an important stage in Oehlen’s artistic culmination. Just as the raw sheets of both works bare the soul of their creative process, alongside their visible brushstrokes, so Oehlen encourages viewers to join him along every stage of his creative journey, in following the development of the tree motif in the build-up of the Elevator Paintings. Read More