Tiziano / Gerhard Richter | Heaven on Earth

The book Tiziano / Gerhard Richter. Il Cielo sulla Terra / Heaven on Earth, published to mark to the exhibition of the same name at Palazzo Te in Mantua, gathers together unpublished essays which explore the relationship between the two artists and the di erent levels of interpreting the theme of the Annunciation, which is fundamental to Western art. Giulio Busi o ers an analysis of the Annunciation in Jewish culture and Annarosa Buttarelli reflects on the interpretation of the philosophy of di erence; insights on Titian are entrusted to Marsel Grosso and Claudia Cieri Via, who reflects on the echoes of the Annunciation in the history of painting after Titian, while Helmut Friedel and Giovanni Iovane focus on the works of Gerhard Richter.

It was 1972, during a visit to the Scuola Grande di San Rocco in Venice, when Richter recognised a quality in the Annunciation by Titian “that makes art a work of art,” and decided to replicate the Venetian painting. Since then, the dialogue with the master remained an inspiration and a key for Richter’s work. The Fondazione Palazzo Te, thanks to the curators Helmut Friedel, Giovanni Iovane and Marsel Grosso, asked the great German artist to speak about this relationship, starting with two masterpieces by Titian; the Annunciation of San Rocco and the one held at the Museo di Capodimonte. Gerhard Richter responded by outlining a series of 17 works in which, with delicacy and allusion, he tells a story, playing on the secret of vision, which becomes a reflection of the sense of painting that unites Titian and Richter.