
From the Series: And the white-colored faces were suddenly black (atomic cloud), 1986, watercolor on paper, 74,8 x 55,5 cm
From the series And the White Discolored Faces Were Suddenly Black (Atomic Cloud), 1986
Two figures occupy an abstract color space. In the foreground, a man kneels in a bent posture, covering his eyes with both hands in an act of resignation. Behind him is a woman holding aloft a cloth and gazing at a point below her with eyes fixed in horror. Above them, toward the upper edge of the image, a bright mushroom-like form seems to be spreading out in the indefinable space. It is the cause of their helplessness and fear.
What specifically prompted the watercolor was the reactor disaster at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant on April 26, 1986. In its aftermath, there was great uncertainty among the German public about how to deal with the nuclear accident.
In this work, Ruth Baumgarte consciously employed the possibilities of the watercolor technique to create translucent to condensed surfaces and to make the flow of color itself visible, in order to show the progressive dissolution of the bodies. This invisible process is suggested by the white values, traditionally areas of paper left uncovered by paint. At the same time, they create bright points of light in the picture and—symbolically—provide visible signs of disintegration. The more the color drains from their bodies, the more the effects of the white cloud become visible, which the woman, rigid with fear, is still trying to ward off with the raised cloth. Not even the planes of color flowing into each other in the space can any longer provide orientation for the two figures, who now face an abyss.
The artist showed that, as in other works from the 1980s, she was interested in reflecting on the invisible effects of political crises on the psyche of the individual.