Online exhibition - Louise Bourgeois

Louise Bourgeois 

The Heart Has Its Reasons

19 Dec 2020 – 4 Apr 2021

"This winter, Hauser & Wirth brings the work of one of the most celebrated artists of the 20th Century, Louise Bourgeois, to the Swiss Alps. Available to experience at the exhibition space Tarmak22 in Gstaad and online, the exhibition takes its title from Blaise Pascal’s well-known phrase: ‘the heart has its reasons of which reason knows nothing.’ Bourgeois studied mathematics and philosophy at the Sorbonne, Paris, and wrote her thesis on Pascal; but the death of her mother in 1932 eventually led her to abandon these studies and turn to art making. Yet she remained a Pascalian, so to speak, in her belief that there is something in our emotional and psychological experience of the Other that eludes, or transcends, rational explanation. For Bourgeois, this relationship to the Other is a complex arrangement, and a world in itself."

Although drastically different to mine in both style and medium, I have always found Louise Bourgeois' work to be extraordinarily inspiring, moving and beautiful to look at. The artist's recent work is predominantly made in the form of sculpture, which I don't personally work with (as of yet), but the subject matter of her practice is what makes her work so incredibly close to home. Bourgeois' work primarily responds to the traumatic experiences she faced through out her child and adult life. Bourgeois making sense of the struggles she faced and making peace with her demons and dark past through her creative out let is what draws me so closely to the artist's work, as this is exactly what I seek to do; and exactly how making art work makes me feel. Following this virtual exhibition I continued to research the artist's childhood and past; reading up on her sculptures such as 'Maman' and the stories and turbulent relationships that informed the creating of the piece. I believe that gaining inspiration through back story is just as important as visual and technical inspiration and Bourgeois' work truly made me feel connected to her and her story, inspiring me to carry on creating and putting my demons to bed through my practice too. 

Virtual/ online exhibition

Zsolt Tibor

Lukas Feichtner Galerie Viewing Room

17 Nov 2020 - 28 Aug 2021

"The Vienna based artist Zsolt Tibor developed an individualistic form of drawing. His works develop not organically, but through the addition of elements from his vocabulary of consistently recurring motifs, such as details of buildings, animals, heraldic symbols, magazines, bottles, figures, hands or vehicles. His artistic creativity is based on the appropriation, depletion and superimposition of meanings, on the juxtaposition and combination of set pieces, and on the separation of signifier and signified. At the same time, Tibor is interested only in the form of his motifs, not in their significance."

Zsolt Tibor's work displayed at the Lukas Feichtner Galerie Viewing Room comprises a series of multi media drawings mostly on two dimensional surfaces such as paper and cardboard. Tibor's work harbours a particularly appealing use of colour contrasts that reflect the juxtaposition of the medias used within the piece. The drawings are bright, bold and eclectic in appearance, intriguing and somewhat childlike with a free spirited flare. Tibor's use of composition and texture is incredibly aesthetically pleasing to me and inspires me to approach my practice with less of a concrete goal in mind and to loosen up with the tools I'm working with. Tibor's work reminds me that sometimes the process of creating an image is just as important as the end result, and to abandon any perfectionism and absolutes. The subtle use of figurative reference in the artist's work is also appealing to me as my work often features figurative detail in the form of nude bodies, Tibor's approach to art work is incredibly different to mine which makes it all the more intriguing. Tibor's lack of care towards the significance behind his motifs is the exact opposite to my philosophy, which again I find very interesting. After exploring this exhibition I would like to experiment with working more freely, on paper, to loosen up and create with more spontaneity and see where I end up in the process. 

Virtual/ online exhibition

The tomb of pharaoh Ramses VI

7/11/2020

"Under a campaign titled experience Egypt from home. stay home. stay safe, the Egyptian government has launched a series of virtual tours of the country’s most famed museums and archaeological sites giving visitors the opportunity to experience their ancient heritage from home. known as KV9, and first discovered in 1898, you can virtually tour pharaoh’s Ramses VI tomb from anywhere thanks to this remarkable 3D virtual tour." 

The virtual tour of Pharaoh Ramses VI was an excellent opportunity to gain some visual inspiration to expand upon my research I'd undertaken previously into ancient Egypt and it's symbolism. The markings that envelop the walls of the tomb are beautifully reminiscent of authentic ancient Egyptian culture and gaining inspiration through these means feels much more intimate and legitimate than a simple google search. Many of the Gods and Goddesses I'd read up about to feed my practise research were featured in the drawings within the tomb, among many I'd not yet discovered. The exhibition was incredibly useful and interesting, leading me to conduct further research into ancient Egypt and its Pharaoh's, temples and tombs. Reading into and investigating this topic will inform my practice both in regards to the visual symbolism I feature in my work and the meanings behind these, aiding me in telling my story through my paintings.

Artist research

Beata Chrzanowska

Chrzanowska’s paintings are beautifully minimalist while also possessing an abstract nature. The deconstructed portraiture in her work is really interesting to me, the ‘half finished’ aspect to her art makes her work all the more interesting and aesthetically pleasing. Her palette and colour choices are also very beautiful to me. The figures in her work have a dismantled form to them which I find visually very satisfying. In my figurative paintings, I plan to paint a variety of different people all communicating with and reacting to one another in different painterly styles. I would love to try painting one of my figures in this half finished deconstructed way to play around with consistency and form. I’d love to paint a portrait or figure in this style in conjunction with a paint pour to achieve a multi media, otherworldly effect. 

Artist research

 Elizabeth Glaessner

Glaessner’s tendency to combine a painterly flowy style with figurative bodies is visually really enticing to me. Her style is void of harsh lines and creates a blurred boundary between the background and the body, creating a seamless ebb and flow within the image that sometimes creates a two dimensional effect. Glaessner’s fuzzy and vibrant style is captivating to the eye. I’m a fan of how Glaessner combines the figures in her paintings with the general fluidity and luminous quality to her pieces. Combining these two elements is something I’m extremely keen to try in my own practice and therefore Glaessner’s work is really alluring to me.

Artist research

AEC Interesni Kazki 

Kazki’s work excites me for the same reasons Nick Mann’s does. The images he creates are so vast, detailed and complex that they draw the viewer in to their hidden corners.  I adore the surrealist style and the skewing of perspectives and angles. Again, Kazki’s work harbours a narrative quality that adds endless mystery to the image, inviting every viewer to create their own tale to explain the insanity in the paintings. His work is abundant in flow and rhythm. I want my work to emanate the same narrative essence and sheer hallucinogenic properties.