Daniel Richter’s Jawohl und Gomorrah possesses an operatic quality. Borrowing themes from both Christianity and German history, Richter constructs his contemporary scene with theatrical flair: his figures are staged in Baroque composition, their outlandish costumes and mask-like faces lend an element of surreal spectacle. The fervent emotion of grand drama is carried through Richter’s frenetic style of painting: thick brushwork battles with translucent drizzles and impassioned smears; acid tones are electrified against the sombre ground. Reminiscent of Ensor’s nightmarish crowds, Richter infuses this street scene with apocalyptic celebration.

Richter’s work is often read with political motive. Working in the genre of epic historical painting, his images are fraught with a painterly anxiety. His work is infused with an apocalyptic energy, reflective of media induced paranoia. Beneath his highly seductive surfaces lies the portent of instability, violence, alienation and ideological subversion of a contemporary world in constant flux. Taking his subjects from pictures found in newspapers, comics, album and book covers, Richter repositions contemporary media imagery in the form of theatrical tableaux that are fantastical and timeless.

His nightmarish scenes are both terrifying and beautiful: rebellious mobs attacking the Berlin wall are staged with medieval religious zeal; gatherings of vagabonds glow with paranormal threat. Laden with the weight of implied history, Richter’s scenes extend beyond emblematic reading; their narratives take on the qualities of magical realism, extending a shiver of supernatural barbarism to depictions of current affairs.

SOLO EXHIBITIONS

2005

• Daniel Richter Contemporary Fine Arts, Berlin

• Daniel Richter Hamburger Kunsthalle, Hamburg

2004

• The Morning After David Zwirner, New York

• Daniel Richter: Pink Flag, White Horse The Power Plant, Toronto

2003

• Hirn Neuer Berliner Kunstverein, Berlin

• Hearn Galerie Benier/Eliades, Athens

2002

• Grünspan, K21 Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Düsseldorf

2001

• La Cause du Peuple Patrick Painter Inc. , Los Angeles

• Billard um halb Zehn, Kunsthalle zu Kiel, Kiel, Germany

Conclusions:

Richter’s canvases are imbued with an alchemic affinity for paint. Copious techniques and applications deceptively flaunt the process of making, yet remain elusive in their overwhelming complexity.

What to Do Next. . .

Find more information about Daniel Richter Exhibitions or looking for his paintings please visit us on http://www. saatchi-gallery. co. uk/artists/daniel_richter. htm