Markus Amm (B. 1969)

In this 2001 work, German artist Markus Amm explores the tension between the two-dimensionality of illustration and the physical texture of his ephemeral material. The additive process of collage results in a dialogue between line, pattern and texture, generating an illusion of optical depth. The work highlights Amm’s immense skill as a draughtsman whilst the large stencilled words ‘bored teenager’ imbue the composition with a sense of light-hearted humour. ‘You can’t act as though modernism can be reinvented; everyone knows the historical development it went through’ argues Amm. ‘Humour and irony are perhaps a good way to approach it. I wasn’t interested in holy values that lay claim to a final and timeless beauty. I don’t believe in that; on the contrary. When I approach modernism it means breaking with all these clichés’.