Decisive inspiration for Förg's large “Grid Paintings” from the 1990s did not only come from the grid and cross structures of Paul Klee's watercolors made as of 1913 onward, but also from Edvard Munch's late work. Förg transformed and alienated these art-historical impulses, which were so significant for the evolution of modern painting, and transferred Munch's motifs and gestures into abstract painting. Klee's works are small and graphic, Munch's paintings are figurative, whereas Förg's creations are always painterly. In the “Grid Paintings”, Förg attained an atmospheric effect and strength that he solely gained from color and the contrast between surface and structure.
In 2014, the Museum Brandhorst in Munich presented the first posthumous retrospective exhibition, followed by the exhibition “Günther Förg. A Fragile Beauty" at the Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam, and the Dallas Museum of Art in 2018. In 2023, the Long Museum in Shanghai also presented a major show. Förg's paintings can be found in numerous international museum collections, including the Museum of Modern Art, New York, and the Pinakothek der Moderne, Munich. [EH]