(Sissach 1959–lives and works in Basel)

Blick auf Piz Bernina. 2019.

Oil on canvas.

Signed, dated and titled on the reverse: A. Rickenbacher 2019 "Blick auf Piz Bernina".

100 x 100 cm.

With an astonishing, true-to-scale and realistic technical precision, the artist Andreas Rickenbacher succeeds in depicting the monumentality of nature on his canvasses. He almost always finds the inspiration for his mountain and rocky landscapes in Engadin and Ticino, as is the case in the present works “Kalter Wintermorgen am Silsersee” and “Blick auf Piz Bernina”. His landscapes exude the powerful, voluminous presence of the earth, balanced with the surrounding pure materials such as water, the pure white snow, the pure clear air and the mostly brilliant blue sky. “The special light conditions and the broad sky trigger in me a certain melancholy.” (Andreas Rickenbacher)

Through his initial professional training in metal work, he acquired an eye and a sensitivity to physical materials, substance and matter. In 1985 Andreas Rickenbacher began to work in painting, after having studied at the school of design in Basel.
His realistic technical precision is inspired by the realism and the classical still life paintings of the 17 – 19th centuries, which have always fascinated Rickenbacher. He executes his works by reproducing his photographs or sketches onto the large format canvasses and so these realistic works replete with material come into being. “The composition is always the focus of my works. To reproduce exactly, without compromise, fascinates me and is a great challenge to my craftsmanship and creativity.” (Andreas Rickenbacher)