ALBERT OEHLEN
FM 38, 2011
Oil and paper on canvas
86 5/8 x 74 13/16 inches  (220 x 190 cm)

Photo by Mike Bruce

Albert Oehlen’s distinct oeuvre, characterized by its heterogeneity of method, palette, and genre, makes painting its subject as well as its medium. His indifference in working in collage, abstraction, and figuration enables a unique dialogue amid styles. In a process reminiscent of the Surrealists’ “exquisite corpse” exercise, one method seemingly spontaneously begets another, and a tattered piece of ephemera will become the foundation for a bold field of color. Computer-aided designs bring another dimension into the fold, juxtaposing the artist’s hand against the mark of the machine, and action and reaction weave into an amorphous visual language.

Albert Oehlen (b. 1954, Krefeld, Germany) lives and works in Germany, Switzerland, and Spain. His solo museum exhibitions include those at the Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam (1997); Musée d’Art Moderne et Contemporain, Strasbourg (2002); Museum of Contemporary Art, Miami (2005); Whitechapel Gallery, London (2006); Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris (2009); Räume für Kunst, Freiburg, Germany (2010); and Carré d’Art, Nîmes (2011). A retrospective of his work was held at the Musée Cantonal des Beaux-Arts, Lausanne (2004–05).