Lot Essay
In 1965, Roman Opalka began a form of life-performance, a series of paintings which, conceptually related to the "date paintings" of On Kawara, registers the passing of time. In describing his concept and goal, the artist writes: "In my attitude, which constitutes a program for my lifetime, progression registers the process of work, documents and defines time. Only one date appears, 1965, the date when the first "detail" will have 1 more white than the "detail" before it. In connection with this, I anticipate the arrival of the moment when "details" will be identified in white on white". (Roman Opalka in: Opalka 1965/1 , Munich 1980).
During the working process, Opalka makes an audiotape recording of himself counting the numbers as he paints them. At the end of each session, he also makes photographs of himself standing in front of the canvas he had been working on. Like the numbers themselves, these documentarty devices, which remain in the artist's personal archives, register the passing of time by documenting the artist's own ageing process.
During the working process, Opalka makes an audiotape recording of himself counting the numbers as he paints them. At the end of each session, he also makes photographs of himself standing in front of the canvas he had been working on. Like the numbers themselves, these documentarty devices, which remain in the artist's personal archives, register the passing of time by documenting the artist's own ageing process.