Sigmar Polke

German, 1941–2010. Sigmar Polke’s works can be identified by the diversity of mediums and materials that exhibit the artist’s wit. He manipulated chemical processes to innovate techniques in painting and photography continuously. By borrowing the aesthetics of popular culture to explore branches of consumerism as a subject, Polke established Capitalist Realism in 1963, a provocative form more than an art movement. His work resonated with his ideology, as seen in his 1976 collage on paper, “Supermarkets from the Cycle, We Petty Bourgeoisie” which features iconic superman figures shopping in a supermarket.