In the beginning was the nail, which seemed to me to be the ideal object with which to model light and shadow – to make time visible. — Günther Uecker Verletztes Feld ( Wounded Field ) at Thaddaeus Ropac Paris Marais presents the eponymous 1981 painting by the German artist Günther Uecker (1930–2025), made using his signature medium: nails. The work is cleft open with an axe, marking the earliest known occurrence of this defining gesture in Uecker’s oeuvre.