- 564
Andreas Gursky
Description
- Andreas Gursky
- Fortuna Düsseldorf
- signed, titled, dated 2000 and numbered 1/6 on the reverse
- c-print
- 69 by 120 in. 175.3 by 304.8 cm.
- Executed in 2000, this work is number 1 from an edition of 6.
Provenance
Matthew Marks Gallery, New York
Acquired by the present owner from the above in 2001
Exhibited
London, Tate Modern, UBS Openings: Photography from the UBS Art Collection, May - November 2006 (another example exhibited)
Catalogue Note
Born in Leipzig in 1955, Andreas Gursky grew up and studied at the Kunstakademie in Düsseldorf, a leading institution for the European avant-garde in 1980. Studying under the pioneer Bernd Becher and coming out of a school with a tradition of such influential artists as Paul Klee, Joseph Beuys and Gerhard Richter, Gursky needed to reconcile the influences of this wide ranging canon of artists. The inspiration of Bernd and Hilla Becher is evident in his work in the codified and orderly approach which was the basis for Bernd's teaching. For the Bechers, photography went hand in hand with creating an extensive inventory of images and subject matter always being secondary to the commitment to the artistic process.
As with most of his photographs, in Fortuna Düsseldorf, we are given a privileged perspective of a radiant panorama of a football match. While managing to keep his emotional attachment to the subject matter impartial, Gursky deals with the themes of current culture from the beginning of his career and has engaged with events that are intrinsically woven into today's society. As in most of his work, Gursky resonates with a large audience. In this work the world's most popular and emotionally viewed game is turned into a moment of absolute silence. It is indeed a challenge to distill such a strong physically and emotionally charged experience into just a single moment. What ensues after the moment of exposure is open to the viewer's interpretation as Gursky is not striving for an element of shock or the instant gratification of photo-journalism. Despite being a beautiful image, the success of this work lies in the fact that it creates the sense of a communal experience for everyone. "For although it used to be held that collective memories were connected both to a specific generation and cultural field, nowadays one doesn't need to experience them directly, as they can be communicated medially," (Thomas Weski Snoeck, Andreas Gursky, p. 19).