Albert Oehlen

This work is in good condition.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The German artist Albert Oehlen is one of the Düsseldorf members of the Junge (Neue) Wilden, the German group of artists that stormed onto the art scene in the early 1980s. Reintroducing painting as a relief from what they considered the stale confines of minimalist and conceptual art, they were associated with similar movements such as the Transavantgardia in Italy, New Image Painting in the USA and Figuration Libre in France. Other members of the German group   included Markus Lüpertz (lot 168), Berlin artists Salomé and Bernd Zimmer (lot 170), A.J. Penck and Jorg Immendorf.

Together with Martin Kippenberger, Austrian Jörg Schlick and Wolfgang Bauer, Oehlen also formed another movement. As the website (www.lordjimloge.com) explains: 'they had an idea over late-night schnapps to found an "art lodge". They birthed it as "Lord Jim Lodge" and created a slogan (Nobody Helps Nobody) and a logo (Sun Breasts Hammer), with the intention that the logo should become more well-known than that of Coca-Cola.' They used the logo freely in their work as promotion, but after Kippenberger's early death the group diversified and now exists only in name and through an initiative called Monochrome. Oehlen's work is included in the Saatchi collection and numerous museums.

Over the years Oehlen's work has become more and more abstract, a trend that can be seen in all three of the present works.

Lot 168 and 170 are by other members of the Junge Wilden, the artists Markus Lüpertz and Bernd Zimmer.