From the exhibition Still Life: 1970s Photorealism:

Holger Friedrich was the brother of the influential German art dealer Heiner Friedrich. This painting was commissioned on behalf of the subject's partner on the occasion of Holger's untimely death. Friedrich is shown close to the viewer and seated in the front seat of a car; the white light of its windows softly frames his face, imbuing the painting with a melancholic, reflective tone. Gerhard Richter's paintings are often derived from photographs, or what the artist calls his "atlas," from which he paints an accurate representation and that he then adapts using a wide brush to create a less legible, blurred effect.