An intro to my past solo exhibition in the gallery section of ‘Cultura Ede’ which is a cultural centre in Ede and contains a Theatre, Cinema, Library, Café and Activity centre. I was asked in January of 2020 to take part in this exposition which was set to be openend in march of 2020. Due to the first Corona outbreak of that year, it was delayed because the building had to be closed for public. We had to wait to next fall and in November 2020, I could finally build up.
After making new work as well as refine existing artworks, I had to fill two large spaces in the gallery areas. I went with a bus and two helpers, loaded with artworks, some newly framed, all provided with hanging systems and a big sculpture specially made for this purpose. This was my first solo exhibition. The title ‘Found work’ was chosen to emphasize the proces of making, which in my case has a lot to do with combining coincidence en choice.
Under pandemic circumstances (no opening, no drinks, mouth-mask) it openend at 21 November 2020 and was scheduled for 6 weeks in the winter, ending on the 2 January 2021. Although we did not expect it at the beginning, the exhibition had to close after 3 weeks open, due to new regulations concerning the increase of covid-19 infections. Planned workshops and guided tours could not take part anymore.
Successfully I had welcome some visitors, friends in the first 3 weeks who were able to visit, luckily. Followed by an extended and hard lockdown in the begin of the year 2021, we thought we could open again end of January, maybe February, March? It ended up staying closed till the re-opening in June. Another 3 weeks from the 5th of June 2021 started and made the six weeks of the exposition full, but we were 7 months down the road. It was hard to cope with the uncertainty and the fact that there were works of me hanging and standing in a closed building and I lost connection with what I was doing or where to go. it was difficult to find the energy to go open again after such a long time. To create new energy we made some nice artist presentation videos of me and my work, which I will share in a later blog.
Now a half year later it all has come down a bit, and I realize how special it was to have had this opportunity. You learn so much from making an exhibition and it is important to have reactions from viewers. Work outside your atelier is so much more vulnerable when it is exposed to critics and other demands made by different environments. I have felt I have been a little let down by people who did not come to see the show, which was very important to me and I had put so much energy to. But I am proud that the works did show the quality I put into it and it showed off despite the circumstances, which were not ideal but worthwhile.
I am also happy with the positive feedback and comments I got from my visitors and two buyers who bought an artwork. I can only dream of such a chance to show so much of what I am doing. That special moment when it all comes together, it does not happen all the time. It takes a lot of work.
This work is a my painted version of a photo that was shared in the world by the media at the time a well know maverick was suddenly being hospitalized with a presumably intoxication during the COVID-19 pandemie, somewhat a year ago now. Driven by my heartfelt worries about the subject of the matter and the whole mystery surrounding it, I just had to paint this newsphoto to try to comprehend what was going on here. It took me some time to finish it. Work was made between september 2020 and february 2021.
I started this work out of a unrecognasible stain, because of the first painting, which kept coming through, despite off layers of gesso and decided to let it be a starting point for this painting. The shape of an imaginary piece of exotic fruit came to mind. It became somewhat the root of this composition in which I felt it wanted to be flowing and organic. In this painting, paint is combined with collage and drawing, when you look close you can see it containes beads, ripped off cardboard and wooden parts. This work was send to an open call competition for the foundation villa Seurat in Paris. The competition had the theme ‘nature reasserts itself’
This second work, was made as a second part of the previous posted work titled; Lockdown part 1. It was originated during the semi lockdown in the fall of last year and has parallels with the situation in which it was created. It felt two sided, just like the pandemic in which we were set back from our daily life. The basics for the work were set by the first work and therefore it seemed easy to make another work. But just als the second period of lockdown it felt extra tough to maintain the concentration in the work and the need to be created. Although confusion and asking questions about creating work is not easy but at the end always good for making decisions.
This work received an honorable mention from galerie Biesenbach in Cologne during one of the ‘Open Calls’ for their online ‘Art Matters 2’ exhibition.
These pictures were shot on location, during filming my artworks for the short video ‘Lost in pandemie’ which you can see in the previous blog. Personally, I like the pictures so much that I wanted to show them in a solo blog. Just for the esthetics of the photo’s. To me they both capture the feeling of totally left and lost in a setting and on the other hand, they seems to immerse naturally in the environment of streets, concrete, building waste and other decors of outside settings. Pictures taken in may 2020.
Last year three of my works were selected for the Festival de Artes Lanzarote & Fuerteventura 2020. Initiated by The Lacuna Studio’s in Lanzarote. The theme of the festival was Lost. Because of the COVID 19 pandemie it was not possible to exhibit the works for real. Instead of a physical presentation the organisation decided to transfer the exhibition into a digital art festival. Lacuna studio’s asked participating artists to think about activities around the festival. Because my works could not be presented for real, I decided to film my works in an lost enviroment during the first lockdown in The Netherlands. My artworks were placed in various situations around the street where I live, but they seem kind of lost. Lost in the silence of the pandemie, empty streets, quiet trainstations, people passing by without noticing the artworks. Because of the work is made with lost and found materials it seemed appropiate to use this setting. I even made a real presentation of 4 works on a deserted wall in back garden of a house nearby which was uninhabited at the time. For a moment it felt like a real art presentation. The video was posted on the YouTube canal of the ‘Lost’ festival by The lacuna studios.
I started to make these assemblages from februari 2020 until november 2020 using photographs of building waste in a container on the street. Finding a way to use these photo’s I first started with framing of the image. Most of them are blown out of proportion to find a new composition in which the origin in less obvious. Along with changing the cadre the context changes. It’s not just building waste anymore but more an abstract composition which make you see spaces within the picture. To make a layering and even to surprise myself in the assemblage, I added materials, such as found wood, plastic bottle mini sculptures or just pieces of different wooden slats, some new, some old. This all led to found works with lost materials.
Left in the corner top: ‘Conversation’ 2017/2020. Mixed media. Acryl on canvas, cardboard, acryl lacquer, wooden slats. 30x40x4cm. August Robin Peters.
Left in the corner bottom: ‘A night in Tunisia’ 2020. Mixed media. Wooden panel, cardboard, acryl lacquer, eco-line, sandpaper, wooden slats. 22x30x6cm. August Robin Peters.
Right: ‘Totem’ 2019. Mixed media. Cardboard, acryl lacquer, torn canvas, wooden frame. 30x40cm. August Robin Peters
Conversation and A night in Tunisia are currently on display on the exposition ‘Gevonden werk – Found work’ in the gallery of Cultura Ede, the Netherlands.
All works are for sale, please message me by mail if you’re interested. augustpeters@icloud.com
augustrobinpeters 