The large sculptures and installations by Katharina Fritsch (born 1956) are indelibly etched into the viewer’s memory. Comprehended within seconds, they are links to human fears and desires and reminders of archetypes. The neon colors, apparently industrially manufactured surfaces, and minimal forms of Company at Table (1988), the Rat King (1991–93), or her Madonnas make reference to Pop Art, the multiple, and Minimalism. They all share a strong presence and, at the same time, an apparent triviality.

Besides these icons, this monograph also features Fritsch’s more recent works, which could be called “spatial pictures“—sculptures combined with monochromatic serigraphs. At first glance, some of them seem to be lighter than the earlier works, almost cheerful. Yet can we really trust the stern-looking chef in front of the frightfully German house in theBlack Forest as he proffers food of a suspiciously wrong color? What sort of surrogate is he trying to sell us?