Julie Mehretu

Untitled (Pulse) (2013) is a four-color lithograph by the Ethiopian-American artist Julie Mehretu who became internationally known through her highly complex architectural drawings on primed canvases, which were often overlaid with cloud formations and washed-out pigments. In 2012, the style of her artworks began to change. The architectural references were replaced by explosive lines and markings reminiscent of the forces of nature or the power of societal resistance.

The print testifies to Mehretu’s artistic interest in these phenomena. It shows a varied repertoire of delicate hatchings, powerful gestures and lines, which seems to explode from a bright center. Mehretu is extremely well-versed in printmaking techniques, which she had already begun to explore during her studies.

Mehretu’s work combines technical precision with an emotionally charged visual language. It thus fits in organically with the Schering Stiftung Collection, where the artistic engagement with the forces of nature is present in works by David Horvitz or Nora Schattauer.