Lot 253 Dα

"The painting should put us in a mood (Stimmung). The theatre, and particularly the stage picture itself, almost becomes a painting. Do the metaphorical visions of Turin and Ferrara put us in a mood? What are we facing here? The figure hiss, as though in bloody battle, reminding us of Shakespeare - perhaps the last fight of Macbeth and Macduff - or perhaps the Sumo wrestlers of Japan. Lacking here is perhaps the music or the words. Can we supply this parts of the Gesamtkunstwerk? The spectator must complete the cycle.
In a dark theatre we look at the lit stage, unaware of our neighbours from whom we become separated as we concentrate on the vision ahead. The painting is surrounded by the natural light, its mood alters according to the time of day. Can the paradox of the painter's fixed intentions be resolved? The black monsters scream at each other. Unlike the prostitutes of Avignon, they do not stare at us, rather they concentrate on each other. We are witnesses to a tableau vivant and a fight to the death. Maybe this ought to be the meaning and purpose of all painting. Maybe dry philosophic criticism has diverted our attention from the reality of the catharsis that the Greeks and Elizabethans made the purpose of their art. Let us not imagine, that in those seconds or minutes that we contemplate this painting the fight will end.[...]
Drama demands a next scene. Painting holds a momento for ever. Is it possible to combine the virtues of both? Maybe in Bühnenstreit, the artist resolves the paradox. The fight unto death. But the situation here does not resolve itself. That is the magic of art." (Norman Rosenthal, in: Giovanni Carandente (Hg.), Markus Lüpertz, Milano 1994, S. 94).