Als Gott den Rock erschuf muB er geil gewesen sein (Rockmusik III)

In the imposing, colourful work Als Gott den Rock erschuf, muss er geil gewesen sein (Rockmusik III) (When God Invented Rock, He Must Have Been Horny), two figures stand out against an abstract background. A completely yellow nude female figure rises from the frame, which is marked by a man's oversized blue head - the artist’s self-portrait - in the centre of concentric red circles, as if floating.

Figuration is still prominent in this early work, which already shows Oehlen's concerns with painting. He addresses the issues of abstraction (in the treatment of substance and simplification of figurative forms) and complementary colours with great, unconventional freedom of execution.

Als Gott den Rock erschuf, muss er geil gewesen sein (Rockmusik III) was exhibited for the first time by the Pinault Collection at the 2018 solo show "Cows by the Water" at the Palazzo Grassi in Venice.