It's Worth Having a Closer Look ... Time and again lay people interested in art and
professionals alike stand dumbfounded before abstract paintings. Following the invention of
photography in the late 19th century painting gradually liberated itself from a
representational depiction of its surroundings and developed its own world of pure form and
color. Non-objective works often have something hermetic and mysterious about them they resist
easy interpretation. This book attempts to open up the impenetrable veneer of abstract painting
and bring it closer to the viewer. To this purpose editor Carolin Scharpff-Striebich-collector
and director of the Scharpff Collection-conducts trenchant discussions with sixteen leading
figures in the international art establishment each of whom selected an abstract painting to
comment upon. These interviews respectively based on a single work enable the reader to
experience the artistic idea expressed in the piece. It's not a matter of quick answers here
but rather about offering access.
