48 Portraits is a group of works by the German painter Gerhard Richter. In the years 1971–1972 Richter created a series of portraits of personalities who influenced modernity in a photorealistic manner. They all portray exclusively men. Oriented towards a central imaginary observer, they give the impression of a modern painted frieze of portrait heads. Richter participated in the 1972 edition of the Venice Biennale with this work. They are exhibited in the Museum Ludwig in Cologne.