In the early 1960s Richter established his reputation through photo-based work. Since then he has used both political issues and more traditional subjects as a means to address art making and illusion. His compositions range from abstraction to figuration. Despite the descriptive title, Vase is a non-representational composition; it is characterized by gestural brushwork that has been carefully applied. Richter creates an illusionistic picture space and, at the same time, refers to an earlier generation of artists known for their "action painting", the Abstract Expressionists.

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