BLACK SWEDISH GRANITE, 1981

Ulrich Rückriem

Narrator: Ulrich Rückriem is a sculptor, but he does not consider it his task to process his material. Instead, he regards the stone to be a sculpture in its own right. He uses the same processes and tools as the stone industry, where he started as an apprentice, and he stops working where most artists would begin. Every stage of the process is visible. The drill holes have not been conjured away by hammers or chisels but are readily displayed. The titles of his works – in this particular case ”Black Swedish Granite” – specify the contents. In his work,  Rückriem consciously accentuates the stone’s relationship to the surrounding architecture.