Markus Raetz

The work

Ombre
(Shadow)
2007
37.5 x 30 cm
Portfolio containing 17 heliogravures (no. 22/33)

Markus Raetz’s work consists of a series of 17 heliogravures with the collective title Shadows.
Raetz creates a series of images that resemble landscapes, orography, or objects that are nothing more than spots and geometric shapes achieved through the artist’s technical gestures.
Heliogravure is a technique for creating images with plate negatives exposed to sunlight. With the title, the artist plays with the concept of shadow as a contrast to the illumination of the sun.

The artist

(Berna, 1941 – 2020)

The main theme of his work is the nature of perception. His works do not focus on what they represent, but on how they are perceived. They often require the viewer’s interaction and can only be understood when seen in motion or from different angles.
Markus Raetz, Swiss sculptor and illustrator. Born in Bern and raised in Büren an der Aare, near Bern, Raetz trained as a teacher and taught in primary school until 1963, when he began his artistic career with stays in Bern, Amsterdam, Carona (in the Swiss canton of Ticino) and Berlin.
His work focused on drawings and paintings during the 1960s and 1970s, and continued with sculptures during the 1980s and 1990s, beginning with the sculpture Der Kopf in Merian Park, Basel (1984).