JAN ALBERS, IMAGINE THIS WOMAN…
September 10 – November 5, 2005

In Jan Albers’ latest series of oil stick paintings and fabric-covered sculptures art itself becomes the subject of his work. Like a pirate Albers assembles historical artworks into a collection which documents his personal view and private preferences. What seems to be a rather disrespectful approach to history of art’s incunabula is in fact an expression of the great ease with which these icons of modernity are being approached and also bear witness to the devotion and love which Albers feels for these artists. By treating them all equally Albers frees the works selected by him from their art historical importance. Thus he meets the artists and their works directly, as in a direct dialogue between artists as colleagues. Frequently it is but impossible to discern the origin of his works, a consequence of the extremely free access Albers grants himself to the works chosen.

The unusual realisations of his works – oil stick on canvas – in a very finely broken range of colour tempts the viewer with its picturesque moments. A seemingly infinite number of horizontally hatched lines of oil stick assemble themselves on the canvas to form a dense structure, out of which appears the motif. Often all that is necessary to make a motif appear are a few colours and some rudimentary shapes. Albers seems to be experimenting with how little information he can get away with to transport something of plastic dimensions.

Jan Albers *1971, llives and works in Dusseldorf, Germany. He graduated from the masterclass of Jan Dibbets at Kunstakademie Dusseldorf. He exhibited widely nationally and internationally, amongst others at Sara Meltzer Gallery, New York; Konrad Fischer Galerie, Dusseldorf; Museum Het Valkhof, Nijmegen, Netherlands; Museum Baden, Solingen, Germany and Palazzo delle Papesse Centro Arte Contemporanea, Siena, Italy.

JAN ALBERS | GALLERY EXHIBITIONS