Eight Gray 2002

In his investigations of the nature of the constructed image and the perception of truth versus fiction, Gerhard Richter, one of the most influential artists of the 20th century, has worked in numerous styles and playfully but astutely questioned our expectations of both photography and painting. Expanding on his study of the nature of looking, Richter has also experimented with windows, mirrors, and the frame throughout his career. This series of eight gray, mirrored panels, created on the occasion of a commission from the Deutsche Guggenheim Berlin, is part of the particular aspect of his oeuvre focused on in Eight Gray: the importance of the Mirror series, projects in glass, gray monochromes, and related works. More than 50 images of drawings and other works dating from 1965 to the present, as well as studies for the Berlin installation, are illustrated alongside an essay by Richter expert Benjamin H. D. Buchloh and a focused bibliography. No other publication has been dedicated to the understanding and analysis of this significant segment of the artist's career.