Under the exhibition title Silent Perceptions, 18 artists from all over Germany will be presenting two of their works each in the GRACE DENKER GALLERY from February 1, 2019, giving visitors and art lovers an insight into their creative work and making them curious to find out more.
The different approaches, ideas and concepts come together and create the opportunity to view the works in their individual essence as well as to perceive them collectively.
In the following article, get to know the exhibitors better and gain an insight into their artistic work and 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.
Part 2 features comments from Doménico CV Talarico, Jorinde Olling, Constanze Thielecke, Richard Liebich, Marita Tobner, Beate Münch, Ingrid Hauff, Claudia Fauth, Peter Kaden and Ivan Gette.
Register for the vernissage at: https://www.artcraftliving.com
Doménico CV Talarico
My work is based on old photographs that I find in photo albums or flea market boxes. I bring these people forgotten by time back to life and create new stories.
The pictures are usually painted on canvas with acrylic paint, sometimes heavily diluted. This is applied in many layers on top of each other until the desired plasticity is achieved.
I don't want to have to bear the burden of explaining the benefits of art in general. My view of the world is reflected in my art and ignites a spark in one or two viewers who engage with my pictures.
The basic idea behind my work is the concept of identity. By painting unknown, extinct people, I want to make the fragility of the individual understandable. For example, how quickly one's own life and the memories and spirit of the times associated with it fade away. The people and the scenes that I depict are intended to shake up the viewer like a magical reflection and at the same time immerse them in sweet, melancholy feelings of nostalgia.
Not only do different eras meet in my works of art, but they also include the present of the viewer: In this way, he/she also becomes part of my concept.
Jorinde Olling
The creative process is my best teacher. As a sensitive, creative and confident individual, I am constantly exploring new ways to express myself. I have always focused on visual art, but it was not until I discovered the tangibility and expressiveness of abstract art, acrylic paint and large canvases that I finally found my true home.
I have always felt in tune with the flow of energy in our physical world. Whether it is a dynamic relationship, an emotional state, or an organic element, abstract art is my way of expressing how I perceive and experience that energy. Through my art, I aim to capture the intricacies and magic of everyday life.
I work very process oriented and all of my pieces are unplanned. Making art is a way for me to visually express and express myself. While I am working on a piece, I allow my intuition to translate my feelings onto the canvas. I usually work in acrylic and water on paper or canvas. When I approach a blank canvas, it is always very exciting, I don't know what will happen. I choose paint, brush, paper and make my first mark on a paper. From there, I let myself be guided. Creating abstract art is an exercise in feeling, listening and trusting for me. I believe that creativity and art have the power to awaken, heal and transform us. It can serve as a gentle path back to that place of freedom, intuition, courage and trust.
I use art to express and color the world around me and to discover the truest version of myself and others. Using the power of movement and art, I allow myself to take a leap into the unknown and hope to encourage others to do the same. I want to challenge our relationships with ourselves and how we can rebuild that. To me, that is art.
Constanze Thielecke
First of all, I approach my artistic work with a certain amount of self-interest, because I can work intuitively in the process and let the lines flow, I can take the time to slowly build up my drawings or, in the case of oil paintings, to gradually apply the layers - it is a kind of meditation, because time stands still. The concept behind my art has to do with the past, which I bring into a new constellation. Figures from mythical history or even artifacts such as vases, which are captured in the pictures but whose vulnerability I want to show at the same time.
I work with pen and paper as well as brush and canvas. What I appreciate about oil painting and drawing is the slowness and deliberation with which the images can be constructed and built up. I always come back to drawing because for me there is something very primal and direct about building your own world with just a simple tool like a pencil.
I am happy when the viewer feels that something is being addressed deep down inside. If someone tells me that they feel an image emotionally, then that is the best compliment for me. There is no specific message in the educational sense, I am simply interested in playing with role models, myths and how they are held onto, but also freedom and renegotiation through their dissolution in the image.
Richard Liebich
Basically, my artistic work in the form of painting is divided into two different directions: abstract and landscape, in the broadest sense. I often think of a rough idea, a rough concept, in advance, and on other days I just feel like using a certain color/color combination, shape or technique and then I see what happens. I can rarely predict what a picture should or will look like in the end. I just think step by step and like to go with the flow. In general, you could say that I always approach a blank canvas with anticipation.
I only work with acrylic paint on canvases covered with cotton. My main focus is on the color, not the canvas. I pay attention to many things when it comes to paint: viscosity, opacity, mixability and general color. Just as important is how long the paint takes to dry and how long I have the opportunity to continue working with it on the canvas. I find that there are big differences between the individual manufacturers and so I have now built up a large repertoire of my favorite products. The materials play an extremely important role in the final work. Not only would there be no picture without them, but they give a picture structure, mood and meaning.
Well, I don't have a strong desire to change the world with my art, but rather to convey an impression of it through my own way of seeing things. I enjoy expressing my feelings, ideas or thoughts. Maybe I can show someone a different perspective in this way, just make them think or otherwise have a positive effect on their emotions. I have always loved painting and with a bit of luck, someone notices it every now and then when they look at my work. If I had to decide on a message for my work, I would say that we should pay more attention to the beautiful, unique and unusual things in the world around us as well as in the world inside us.
Marita Tobner
The basic theme of my painting is the love of life and in particular the reality of women's lives. This creates snapshots against the background of collected experiences from everyday life, the banal, and condenses into stories.
The works address the diverse aspects of human existence, its nature and its relationships and ambivalences to and among each other. The environment, the image space, cannot simply be assigned to stereotypes; abstract and objective elements permeate the image space and, in this field of tension, provide a clear view of inner and outer experiences.
A powerful color scheme, the use of various stylistic means and techniques, as well as the dynamics of the graphics create new, complex stories with details that captivate with their intensity.
Ideas for images arise from my own experiences as a woman and from literature. The title of a work is often already decided before it is finished and the individual stylistic elements are sought afterward. This creates a strong tension that also allows intuitively composed elements to flow into the painting process.
Abstract and figurative elements are placed in dialogue with each other and complement each other.
The word comes first, followed by the selection of the color canon, and the background is created in painting. Collage elements are integrated and the composition is organized using graphics and spray painting, for example. The main element, the woman (woodcut or linocut), is then integrated into the work. Finally, the individual elements are supplemented with graphics, painting and collage elements until they are condensed and coherent in their statement.
My works are created serially using mixed media, i.e. a mixture of acrylic, oil, wood or linocut, collage, painting and drawing. The intention is to achieve maximum variation - also in the image statement - using the different techniques and materials.
My intention in my work is to make visible the inner experience in dialogue with the external realities of life of women per se. Uncovering the interrelationships and contradictions of human existence and thus putting them up for discussion is very important to me.
Beate Münch
My art is created with an idea, a feeling, without any preliminary drawings. In the working process, through the experimental openness that served as the basis for the basic idea of the picture, everything can change again. It is an open process. I see a blank canvas, a blank sheet of paper as an invitation to free design.
I mainly paint with acrylic on canvas or paper, but I also use other materials such as charcoal, chalk, sand, etc. The choice of materials is entirely intuitive. I use whatever appeals to me at the time.
My aim is to make the viewer think through my work and to send them on a search to discover something that speaks to them and touches them personally. The meaning of my artistic work lies not in what is seen, but in the inner process that seeing triggers.
Ingrid Hauff
I am self-taught - painting is a great joy for me. After being diagnosed with Parkinson's, I painted for the first time since childhood as part of art therapy. That was in May 2015. Since then, I have been painting every day. I find it very meditative and energizing. That is why it has become essential for me to express myself through painting. Time stands still and I am completely at peace with myself. Then I start to paint intuitively.
The white canvas always demands a brief moment of respect from me. But then comes the spontaneous selection of the first color, which usually finds its place in the center. I often start with bright, clear colors. My mood shapes the further presence of color. A very physical process follows in which I usually design the base, the background. The use of water, spatulas, cloths and glazes often takes hours and creates a depth in the surface. I love the smooth, transparent surface in the end result. Through this process, my figures unfold and begin to animate the canvas.
I like working with acrylic paints, which suit my often very fast working style. They are easy to mix and dry very quickly. I like the large range on the market and use my experience with individual colors from different suppliers when making my selection. I prefer canvases that can withstand heavy application of paint and repeated removal of paint. It is a constant process of trying and experimenting that allows my wealth of knowledge to grow. Lastly, I add the contours of the figures, which I further enhance with acrylic markers. At the end is the finished picture.
The world is made up of individual people and it touches me deeply when the viewers of my pictures seem to sense the emotions that moved me during the creative process. It is a great feeling of happiness when older people develop an almost childlike joy in discovering all the figures in my works of art. In general, it is nice when people allow themselves to be transported from the present into the realm of fantasy for a moment.
Last but not least, art is a way of communicating with my fellow human beings. That's great and I'm very happy to be taking this path and perhaps convincing others to try it too and give space to their creativity.
Claudia Fauth
The canvas or paper is the base material. I use a lot of different materials in my work. First I have an idea in my head and then I start to implement it. In general, I know exactly what I want to achieve beforehand.
The more unusual the materials are, the more important their meaning is. Lately I have rarely devoted myself to painting. I am currently building large spheres out of moving feathers. I have just visited the Yawanawa Indians in the Amazon and had enough time there to rethink my art and go in new directions.
The message behind my creative work is to make the unknown tangible and thus contribute to the development of the world.
Ivan Gette
How would you feel if you found yourself back in the moment that had the most impact on your life? This is the way how and why I started to paint: to bring myself right back to the moment and experience it through the abstract thus more emotionally.
As profound as it might sound, my definition of art is to reflect a certain moment and its connected feelings on canvas through the form of the abstract painting. I leave enough space for audience to create personal interpretation of what that moment could have been or how that moment could have looked like if they would have been there. The only hint the viewer is given - name of the painting. Different layers guide them through the whole moment and encourage them to create their own experience with their eyes and imagination.
To my mind, the purest form of art is based on individual experience, - it makes you feel different when you are open to discover.
Getting nostalgic or having a particular strong experience aspires me to visualize a moment that I lived or live in. This feeling can be so intense that it can last up to a few weeks, follow my thoughts, lay on my shoulders until I get it on canvas/paper and process it through art.
I stand ahead of the canvas, close my eyes for a minute as meditation and start with the strongest emotion and its related color I see in front of my eyes. From there I lose myself in a creative flow and apply color after color while having the whole picture / story / song / smell or person in my mind that made me feel in a certain way. The emotions guide my brush, but never misplace the focus. I paint until this feeling is gone and pick up the brush again when it's back.
Sometimes it might take a month to continue working on a painting. I try to finish one before starting the other to assure the spirit is not distracted. Obviously, there is always an exception to your own rules. Once you feel the emotional overload - you work on several artworks at the same time.
Painting with acrylic colors is irreplaceable: the consistency, covering power and final permanent look. Therefore, acrylic colors are versatile when it comes to working on various surfaces and using multiple techniques.
I enjoy painting on canvas, but mostly I use paper. It all started once I got to question myself about sustainability and waste of paper, especially considering the sample paper to write the measurements of the frames. I truly believe art is about message, individual experience, momentum and audience which is here to understand and follow. However, in a future I will paint more on canvas since my new concept combines various media to capture the imperfect moment.
Several brushes, scrapers, color tubes, sticks, wrapping paper, basically everything that can be used to apply colors, is needed in my creative process. Actually, the majority of it is self-made or customized version. I love to cut brushes, drill holes into color tubes and bend scrappers… There is nothing like imagination and freedom in abstract art, same with its medium. In the end, the most important is that all materials would reflect the purest form of the moment, feeling that is expressed with my art.
Art is very selfish. It should be, otherwise you will get distracted. I don't paint for the people. I paint for myself.
From my perspective, art is an expression of my story and emotions that I have experienced in my life journey. When I hang my work in a gallery - I invite the people to become a part of my life, a certain moment, a feeling. It's really personal. I appreciate and initiate the viewers to identify themselves, see their own moments, create their interpretations.
My paintings encourage people to think, feel and hold in for a moment. It inspires them to go out and create something that triggers other people's emotions. This is a beauty of art in a broad sense. I want to inspire to count every moment and be actual in a present time.
Duration: 01.02.2019 to 26.04.2019
Location: GRACE DENKER GALLERY, Hammerbrookstraße 93, 20097 Hamburg.
Vernissage: 01.02.2019 at 18:00
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