The figurative watercolors of Achim Riethmann (b. London, 1979; lives and works in Berlin) are delineated with great precision and exude a powerful aesthetic appeal. Look again, however, and the semblance of perfection is shattered: fragmented and stripped of their context, the motifs-masked individuals, depictions of plants or technical implements-appear in isolation before white backdrops. Central objects are elided, making voids the focus of the pictures. Riethmann's works address contemporary social and political issues such as the transformation of social structures and value systems or man's position in his natural environment. The fragmentary quality of the drawings moreover reflects our subjective and inevitably incomplete view of reality.
This book, the young artist's first extensive monograph, presents a collection of watercolors and installation pieces created since 2009. With essays by Isabelle Meiffert and others and a conversation between the artist and his former teacher Leiko Ikemura.