KiafSEOUL

A vast, seemingly infinite plain forms the foundation for the scene: As if from nowhere, people appear on the surface of the image. They emerge from layers rich in nuances of light white or hazy gray, leaving plenty of room for interpretation. The artist Leszek Skurski, who is a native of Poland, repeatedly devotes his paintings to figurative storytelling. In his works, he depicts many stories, that remain open-ended and allow the most diverse interpretations. They are paintings depicting narratives that seem to have paused or stopped in action, and Skurski captures these forms with a narrative density. Many evanescent moments of our existence and interactions are captured on the canvas like excerpts or snapshots between their occurrence and disappearance. Hence, the images of the artist, who lives and works in Fulda, are reminiscent of film stills or still images that outline a content, character, or mood. 

In his paintings, Rayk Goetze addresses the great themes, motifs firmly anchored in the tradition of art history. Goetze is a painterly alchemist; he removes the motif from its context and transfers it to the present. On the one hand, his paintings combine old-masterly precision of color application with strong, two-dimensional color application and, with their somberly luminous colorfulness, create a special aura and tension that transfer the paintings to the present day. Rayk Goetze moves between the poles of the fascination of creative possibilities and a game with the powers, a painting from the deepest conviction, which captivates through its subject matter as well as through its ambivalence and narrative depth.

Constantin Schroeder's figurative paintings are impressive, moving images with a profound sense of depth. His pictorial protagonists are fascinating characters that never let us go. Internalizing the present with all its complexities, he uses a very reduced color palette. Mostly executed in large formats, the scenes captivate the viewer with their characteristic narratives. Schroeder reaches deep into the archive of the human psyche. His works reveal an enigmatic iconography, which includes young heroes posing interpersonal mysteries. The artist, who lives and works in Berlin and studied theology, philosophy, and art history, also illuminates the darker sides of life in an extraordinary, hyper-realistic style. These are powerful images that captivate us with their enigmatic pictorial content. Schroeder leaves some parts of the image white, which allows the viewer to develop his or her own interpretation and understanding of the image through open associations.

The paintings created by the artist Laura Aberham, who lives and works in Düsseldorf, are defined by their color intensity and incredible dynamic. Her use of color and form is confident and extremely powerful, and her mostly large-scale, abstract works appear gestural and at the same time precisely composed. Laura Aberham's paintings are a tribute to color. With gestural, voluminous brushstrokes, she skillfully brings unusual color constellations onto the canvas in many layers; here, color itself becomes the concept. The artist, who graduated from the Kunstakademie in Düsseldorf as a master’s student under the direction of Ellen Gallagher, found her very own artistic style through her very physical approach to color. At the beginning of her studies, she attended sculpture classes, where she internalized her experiences with volume and dynamics. She continued to apply her experiences with structure, form, and space into her paintings. Due to their spatiality and physical dynamics, Laura Aberham's works appear to continue beyond the edge of the canvas into the space of the viewer.