On February 10 in London, Sotheby's sells Abstraktes Bild 599, oil on canvas 300 x 250 cm painted in 1986, lot 37 estimated £ 14M.
599 is an experimental work. Chaos is here replaced by a double movement of forces, horizontal and vertical. This is one of his earliest uses of the rake which is still challenged by the brush. Many remorses indicate all the care paid to the realization of this painting in a large size that brings to it the role of a demonstrator.
The artist offers 599 with a full chromatic scale structured in blocks with visible border lines between the colored areas. The clear parts display an opulent shine rarely attempted in painting and evoking Klimt.
The overall impression is a movement of vertical blaze that joins the volcanic explosions by Matta.
599 is a masterpiece by Richter in the etymological meaning of the word, as it is an artwork that opens a new process which will be prolific and will maintain abstract painting among the major arts of contemporary era.