Sigmar Polke

Acquired directly from the artist by the present owner in the late 1970s

Colour: The colours in the catalogue illustration are fairly accurate, although the print of the fabric is much more prominent in the original. Condition: This work is in very good condition. There is light wear in places to the outer edges and corner tips. Close inspection reveals a few minor and unobtrusive rubmarks in isolated places: notably a diagonal rubmark towards the centre of the composition and a further horizontal rubmark approximately 30cm. above this. No restoration is apparent when examined under ultra-violet light.
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A multi-layered image of humorous caricatures bestrewn on a bold emblematic pattern indicative of consumer culture Freundliche Schlange is a mature example of Sigmar Polke’s revered Fabric Pictures. By dismissing the formal notion of the blank canvas in favour of a pre-purposed material, in this progressive series of works, first initiated in 1963, Polke challenges the traditional conventions of the picture plane and deconstructs the institution of high art. One of the most renowned and seminal German artists of his generation, Polke's conceptually complex investigation of contemporary society, through a playful and innovative combination of fine art and popular culture place him alongside the great American masters of Pop Art, such as Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein. With his first comprehensive retrospective due to open at the Museum of Modern Art, New York, in April 2014, travelling to Tate Modern, London, and Museum Ludwig, Cologne, his exceptional artistic achievements and extensive influence on global art and cultural history are today celebrated like never before.

As highlighted by the work's title a monochrome cartoonlike rendering of a snake dominates the composition. A symbol fraught with mythological iconography, the serpent is known both as a symbol of evil power, as well as of life and fertility, carrying allegorical significance in a dichotomous spectrum of religions and cultures. Perhaps its most well known iconography in history is that of the creation myth. Shared by Christianity, Judaism and Islam alike, the myth holds universal meaning and delineates the serpent’s encounter with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, where its cunning powers of persuasion were responsible for the temptation of Eve and the fall of mankind. Created in 1977, a period of liberal experimentation during which the artist travelled the world, seeking new experiences in unfamiliar territories such as Pakistan and Afghanistan, Freundliche Schlange reflects Polke’s heightened appreciation for transcendental allegories and cultural mythologies. Surrounding the friendly snake is a comic melding of implike-sprites, their primitive style is reminiscent of the artist's early drawings and satirical 'Pop' paintings of the 1960s. In a witty amalgam of classical iconographies and playful motifs of twentieth-century prefabricated animations, Polke combines high art and popular culture.

Gleaming through the thin, white surface of Freundliche Schlange is the repetitive red and black design of a pre-printed fabric. The recurring motif of the iconic fashion magazine Vogue is interspersed with bright geometric shapes and modish images of elegant women, seemingly appropriated from the fashion billboards and advertising campaigns of the time. A testament to the rapidly growing commercial culture of the Twentieth Century, the modern imagery and serial design of the print reflects the trends, abundance and replication of mass production. Through a unique interplay between the hand painted surface and the reverse of the painting, Polke creates a striking assemblage of multi-layered imagery. Challenging the notion of painting as an autonomous discipline, he uncovers new layers of meanings by investigating and incorporating the cornerstones of contemporary culture. As Katharina Schmidt points out: "Transparency is an aspect of Polke's artistic strategy that has less to do with his complex interaction with sources and prototypes than with an unremitting need to see through and illuminate relationships, connections, situations. ... With Polke the need to see through things leads him to pay remarkable attention to their back and reverse sides" (Katharina Schmidt in: Exhibition Catalogue, San Francisco, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Sigmar Polke, 1991, p. 39).

With his jovial and creative re-interpretation of the image-laden nature of the Twentieth Century - both humorous and culturally resonating in effect, his paintings have remained imaginative and unpredictable, as epitomised by the present work.