Sale: 470 / Post War I, June 09. 2018 in Munich Lot 890

 

890
Günther Uecker
Der Wald, 1995.
Sculpture
Estimate:
€ 50,000 / $ 54,000
Sold:
€ 62,500 / $ 67,500

(incl. surcharge)
Der Wald. 1995.
Sculpture . Nails and ashes-glue composite on wooden trunk.
Signed and dated on stand. Height: 55 cm (21.6 in) . [SM].

PROVENANCE: Galerie Storms, Munich.
Private collection Munich (acquired directly from the aforementioned).

Since the 1970s Uecker has addressed the destruction of nature through man in his works. Works like "Kunstpranger" (Art Pillory) from 1984, for which he spiked an old elmtree with nails weighing a total of 130 kilo, are open accusations of the forest dieback. At a later point he made smaller multipart "Nail Forests". This sculpture, a trunk with carpenter's nails and ashes and glue, comes from this work group. After the nuclear accident in Chernobyl in 1986 Uecker's "Aschebilder" (Ash Pictures) and "Aschemenschen" (Ash People) depict both the destruction of nature and the self-destructive effects of mankind's technological accomplishments. In this respect Günther Uecker's works are documents and memorials of our life reality: "These objects can be understood as tools for thought processes. An artist is an inventor, an inventor of ideas that can be realized visually in order to serve as allegories of a spiritual development." (Quote from: Künstler, in: Cat. Günther Uecker. Eine Retrospektive, Kunsthalle der Hypo-Kulturstiftung, Munich June 19 - August 15, 1993, p. 54). [SM]



890
Günther Uecker
Der Wald, 1995.
Sculpture
Estimate:
€ 50,000 / $ 54,000
Sold:
€ 62,500 / $ 67,500

(incl. surcharge)