“I draw on modernism as a vocabulary,” Anselm Reyle (b. Tübingen, 1970; lives and works in Berlin) says. For his reliefs, pictures, and sculptures, he uses materials such as PVC film, acrylic, mirrors, or concrete. He experiments with automotive paint, putty, LED lights, and African sculptures. Reyle already engaged with abstraction and formalism when the art market was still clamoring for figurative painting. Working with everyday materials and contemporary associations, he gives fresh impetus to themes modernism was thought to have dispensed with. An ongoing concern in his work is the questionable status of effects and decorative elements. “Mystic Silver” offers a comprehensive panorama of ca. 80 selected works representing various divisions of his oeuvre from the past several years. The book explains interconnections—as well as ties to other artists—and illustrates that Reyle doesn’t see a contradiction between glossy finish and trash, between luxury and found objects. His gaudily colorful art, which deliberately oversteps boundaries of good taste, has earned him a reputation as the art scene’s heavy metal star. Patrons who have bought his art include not only prominent art collectors, but also Hollywood stars and fashion designers.

With essays by David Ebony and Dirk Luckow and a conversation between Friedrich von Borries and Anselm Reyle.