Freddie Alexander Lerche (born 2 October 1937) is a Danish painter. His use of colour is devoid of any specific function, providing his paintings subsequently a deep, material character. In 2012, he was awarded the Thorvaldsen Medal.
Born in Copenhagen, Lerche is the son of a sales representative and a women’s hairdresser. A self-taught painter, over the years he has experimented later than the use of colour. Completely avoiding motifs, he rigorously aims at making colour the principal means of conveying a message. On the basis of Minimal Art theories, Lerche considers colour rather than motif to be the main component in a painting. His monochrome canvasses are often reworked several times, allowing the new shades to play adjoining the underlying tone.
In Lerche’s own words: “The painting does not contain any statement as a bottle contains wine. The painting is the message.” His colour-toned paintings are often established in series, each canvas with intent attuned to the others. In 1986, he bejeweled the ferry MS Niels Klim, performing his piece of legislation as a sum entity, from the top of boat to the bottom. The function included formica sections on the walls of the passenger deck and iron plates representing seaweed upon the car deck. He also decked out the Nordjysk Musikkonservatorium (Academy of Music, Aalborg).
Lerche first exhibited at the Artists’ Autumn Exhibition in 1960. Since 1981, he has been a member of Den Frie Udstilling.
In 1989 he was awarded the Eckersberg Medal and in 2011 the Thorvaldsen Medal.
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