In the form of a group exhibition, 11 artists come together to present their artworks at the Grace Denker Gallery. Seven of the artists present their artworks for a period of two months and four others for just one day. The artists present their works under the motto TOTAL REFLECTION and show two of their artworks each to give the audience a taste of their creative work and inspire one to see more.
The different methods, ideas and concepts together form the group exhibition and offer guests the opportunity to view each work of art individually but also to perceive the entire art collection as a collective.
In the following article, get to know the exhibitors better and gain an insight into their artistic work and their artistic concepts. The exhibitors answer questions about their artistic process, how they start and what materials they use. They also explain what influence their art can have on the world. Arpine Ayvazyan, Matthias Eitner, Michael Ottavio, Nekissa Behroozfard, Saskia Segebrecht, Stephanie Bartel, and Torsten Zöllner speak out in the interview.
The group exhibition will open on August 16th at Hammerbrookstrasse 93. The vernissage will take place at 1:30 p.m. in the inner courtyard of the gallery building. After the opening, the works can be viewed during the gallery's opening hours from August 17th, 2020 to October 15th, 2020 in the gallery's premises on the 4th floor of the Industriehof.
Arpine Ayvazyan
My creative process starts in my head and very often with a question or a thought experiment. Then I draw these ideas as pictures until I am satisfied with the sketch. Only then do I paint the picture large on a canvas or on paper.
I like to work with ink, acrylics and pencils, both on canvas and on cardboard. It is important to find the right materials, as the end result depends very much on them. The energy and dynamics of the work change depending on the medium. For example, a painting can look very different with watercolors than with acrylics. These paintings have different moods and communicate different emotions. However, the materials only play a secondary role for the idea itself.
I paint ideas that make me think. I hope that these pictures also make the viewer think. Understanding oneself and one's thoughts and emotions are at the heart of my paintings.
Michael Ottavio
"Everything is upside down!" That's how the process often starts. What I mean by that is that I often approach a new picture with a clear idea of how it should look in the end and then, during the process, this idea gets lost and in the end what comes out is what had to come out.
My idea of art is always that I want to see things that have taken on a strong visual and emotional form in my head. Both in my own art and in the art of others. The targeted look into the abstract makes it easy to let your own mind run wild. Canvas, acrylic, spray paint, tape and fire are the most commonly used materials. I love tape, the use of different tapes is something very liberating, strategic. In "This Strange Engine" tape plays an important role because it connects and protects. I see tape as a great material for letting the "everyday" flow in without being too obvious.
Spray paint and fire is a combination that I have not wanted to do without for some time. Burning the paint after it has been applied has brought so many facets to light. A deep and structural change occurs on the surface, which in many works becomes part of the overall statement. The element of surprise plays a big role here, as every medium behaves differently when worked with fire. You get many different reactions that you can control, but sometimes they just happen and break through. I like the knowledge of art that allows every viewer to feel something without submitting to dogmas.
Voices, words and gestures are important in our society and yet they are losing value. Seeing each other and looking at something together will become a rare commodity. We have all the opportunities to talk and yet we prefer to look at pictures on a small screen. Perhaps only art can allow people to look at something real together again. Something that someone has created, something that has weight, a color, a smell and a meaning. The secret to meaning and the ambiguity of my art are very important to me, especially as part of a society that finds and loses itself just as often. "Unication" is one of my favorite words because it stands on its own and is contained in "communication."
Matthias Eitner
I work from intuition. There is a thematic preparation, a search for motifs and inspiration, on the Internet and in the real world, and when the collection is sufficient and the themes of a cycle are set, then the work on the canvas begins. The process is unpredictable, without preliminary sketches I paint roughly on the canvas, the intensity comes from listening to my inner voice. Kitschy but true!
I work exclusively with acrylic and varnish. Acrylic dries quickly, is actually ugly, and only gets the desired depth through the varnish. This suits my fast working method very well.
That numbers are not everything, that predictability does not offer security, and that complex times require a response from each individual. Intuition needs to be trained in order to have an inner compass in externally experienced complexity. This is what my
Saskia Segebrecht
I have been drawing and painting since I learned to hold a pencil. Therefore, expressing my feelings and thoughts in an artistic way is part of my normal everyday life. It frees me from my worries and lets me relax. My concept is simple but very important to me. I want to move other people emotionally with my art. To convey and bring my passion and love for nature closer to the people who look at my pictures. My art should reflect the beauty and diversity of nature and make it clear how important it is to preserve it. The unique atmosphere that sometimes impresses us when we take a walk in an autumn forest or on holiday by the roaring sea. I want my pictures to trigger these emotions in the viewer. This feeling should be accessible and visible to everyone.
I create my pictures in different ways. Sometimes because I have wanderlust, or because something in everyday life inspires me. Like a trip with my family or a walk with my dog. And then I get started. The canvas doesn't stay white for long. My works can be as varied as nature itself. But definitely emotional. I really enjoy trying out new things, which is why I use various acrylic techniques. This is a great way to depict the different structures and textures of nature. I prefer to work on canvas with a stretcher frame and acrylic paint. When the work of art is finished, it's not just the color that matters. The feel and structure are also important in order to trigger the right emotion in the viewer. Whether realistic or abstract representation, colorful or simple. My works are varied and moody, just like nature.
Creating art to leave something behind for the world is, of course, the greatest wish of every artist. My message to people is “take care of the environment and preserve it”, so that in the future nature can be viewed not only in paintings.
Stephanie Bartel
The idea behind each of my pictures is beauty, lightness, the ability to transport you to another place when you look at it and to feel completely happy with all of your senses. There is no artistic concept. I let myself be guided by nature, the environment, music, words, fashion, people and, above all, feelings and emotions. My being and all of these factors flow into the colors. It is simply sensual to create each new picture. Every now and then I think about whether I want to make a calm, lively picture using the color chart, but ultimately everything turns out differently when I look at the canvas/wood and my colors. That's when my creativity flows and everything that was planned is abandoned.
The materials I use in every picture are acrylic paints, a pouring medium such as Liquitex, Owatrol or Boesner. A varnish to protect the picture from Liquitex. When it comes to the materials I use to mix the individual colors, I pay attention to upcycling. I use screw-top jars from food, PET bottles from detergents and I reuse my wooden spatulas several times. In my art cellar there are various boxes on which the pictures are created and which are lined with wallpaper. Most of my 70 or so pictures are on canvas. I particularly like the round ones and the larger ones. But I also really like using wood for my pictures. It's great how differently the pictures develop due to the wood grain. When it comes to colors, I fell in love with Liquitex, Amsterdam, Royal Flash from Ideen mit Herz and pigments from Dipon. All of these colors are high quality, can be combined well, have great coverage and are easy to mix and pour. Every now and then you try something different, for example wall paint from Alpina. Glitter stones, granulate or gold and silver leaf are also occasionally used in my pictures. It is important to me to create long-lasting and high-quality works of art, which is why good quality is important to me in the finished work of art. The most important thing, however, is the emotion with which I poured the paints; I see this in every finished picture. You could also occasionally call the pictures a kind of diary. There will certainly also be pictures with sand or shells, perhaps with stones. But then probably more with resin. I have already poured dandelions with it and that is great. There is so much scope for development. Everything is allowed. Nothing is compulsory.
Firstly, that no one is too old to discover passion within themselves, to ignite it and live it. If you open up and listen to yourself, you will feel what your heart beats for. What makes you so complete and content and proud. Everyone has that within them. Of course, it could be baking, knitting or something completely different. There are no limits and endless possibilities. The message is, on the one hand, create with love and it will be loved. And on the other hand, do it because you are living now! Influence on the world is certainly a bit far-fetched. It is too abstract for that. But each picture is created with passion and the viewer can sense that for sure and if they have just a little sparkle in their eyes, that is already worth a lot. The magic of passion💙.
Nekissa Behroozfard
As a Hamburg artist, master's degree in Japanese studies and art historian with a focus on Japanese art and culture, I create high-quality unique pieces in which contemporary art and traditional Japanese techniques of Nihonga and calligraphy form a symbiosis.
For me, art is synonymous with aesthetics, the perception of beauty, tenderness and transience. I want to reflect these values, which are also the basis of Japanese aesthetics, in my paintings.
When I create a new painting, I go straight to the blank canvas with my brush, without making any preliminary drawings, and let the creative process take effect on me and the creative energy flow. I mainly use acrylic paints, Japanese ink and shell gold for this, as I think these media are best suited to the Nihonga technique I use.
In my paintings I mostly capture the beauty of the moment and transience. By creating aesthetic motifs, bright tones and my own understanding of representation and expressiveness, I want to create a feeling of joy and security in the viewer and bring a little light into life.
Torsten Zöllner
My artistic endeavor is to connect art with nature, life and being. The connection between the three synonyms and the feeling that arises from each work is expressed in each of my works.
Works are created full of admiration, with meaningful criticism and the courage to face the truth. The basis for every work of art is wood as a natural canvas. The age and natural colors of the wood flow into every work. Every theme of my work is integrated into the wood, so that a close connection is created between the work of art, nature, life and being.
The strongest feeling in every work remains RESPECT for NATURE.
Bruno von der Burg
Duration of the exhibition: 16.08.2020 to 15.10.2020
Location: GRACE DENKER GALLERY, Hammerbrookstraße 93, 20097 Hamburg.
Opening: August 16, 2020 at 1:30 p.m.