An infinite sum of sinusoidal functions; A Gallery Named Sue, The Hague

Abel Wolff

Some time ago i had the honour and pleasure of saying (and writing) a few opening words for this wonderful exhibition of works by Abel Wolff, Johannes Langkamp and Matthias Grothus at A Gallery Named Sue.

Abel Wolff

The dyslectic reader might think it is about suicidal functions, but in fact it is all about the opposite.

Abel Wolff

All three artists have been working on a kind of continuum in which things both change and remain the same.

Abel Wolff

Abel Wolff

In Wolff’s work it is very much about the ongoing process directing itself, in this case scanning and subsequent printing.

Matthias Grothus

Matthias Grothus

Grothus gives new life to older mechanisms and

Matthias Grothus

Matthias Grothus

Matthias Grothus

let them co-operate in what can be seen as a comment on time and the present.

Johannes Langkamp

Johannes Langkamp

Johannes Langkamp

Johannes Langkamp

Langkamp’s ideas derive from what is actually happening in between the camera lens and the object it is targeting.

Johannes Langkamp

Johannes Langkamp

Johannes Langkamp

Johannes Langkamp

It is a well presented ensemble, in which the aesthetics of the three installations follow their functions like in musical instruments.

Matthias Grothus

[Click on the pictures to enlarge]

Content of all pictures courtesy to the artists and A Gallery Named Sue.

 

Bertus Pieters

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Sommernachmittag, A Gallery Named Sue, The Hague

While life outside goes on,

inside A Gallery Named Sue in The Hague life takes a different turn, combining 19th century Dutch painting and today’s art in the exhibition Sommernachmittag.

Matthias Grothus’ (1982) work Methamorphose is omnipresent with its bird sounds,

creating a strange acoustic background for H. W. Mesdag’s (1841 – 1915) moonlit seascape of the 1890s.

Mesdag’s painting in visual rhyme with a photograph from the Night View series by Reggie Voigtländer (1966) (far left), The Blouse She Wore last Summer by Kevin Bauer (1987) (left) and a View of Dordrecht by J.B. Jongkind (1819 – 1891) (right).

Apart from Mesdag and Jongkind there are some works from the Dutch romantic era on show, amongst them works by Andreas Schelfhout (1787 – 1870)

and his pupil Wijnand Nuijen (1813 – 1839).

These romantics are flanking a small work by Brigitte Spiegeler.

Her works seeming to deal with inner space, Spiegeler is in the right place here.

And there ‘s another unexpected meeting!

Kevin Bauer’s work deals with both the inside and the outside, but

in Dario Bongiovanni’s (1984) work the inside is reduced to a few lines and corners (in the background a small painting by Cornelis Springer).

Bongiovanni’s work is combined with a sculpture by Eugène Dodeigne (1923), which is part of the annual The Hague Sculpture show.

The main showground for The Hague Sculpture is the Lange Voorhout. But on its own and in combination with the works of Sommernachmittag this work by Dodeigne has more impact than the whole show at the Lange Voorhout.

Once noticed you can almost feel its presence.

Five photographs of Reggie Voigtländer’s series of six Night Views are on show here. The missing one is presently at the annual Zomerexpo (Summer Exhibition) at the Gemeentemuseum in The Hague.

Works by Arike Gill (1983) also give a visualisation of inner space.

In summer, if not closed, galleries present the public with group shows. However, making a good group show is an art in itself.

Sommernachmittag is a very good one. The 19th century paintings are from private collections while the contemporary works are for sale.

They make a remarkable combination. The space in the gallery is good and well used. And the opened windows make a connection with the outside world.

(Click on the pictures to enlarge)

 

Bertus Pieters