Ruttkowski;68 at Dallas Art Fair 2017
ANTWAN HORFEE (FR)
DANIEL WEISSBACH (GER)
TOM KRÓL (GER)
DEVIN TROY STROTHER (US)
06/04/2017 – 09/04/2017
ANTWAN HORFEE (FR)
ANTWAN HORFEE’s paintings are densely packed with scenic and symbolic motifs. The Paris-based artist creates artworks of high tension by combining dynamic and colorful elements within intricate compositions. While he seeks pure abstraction in some artworks, others have figurative allusions.
As a former graffiti artist who needed to complete his illicit works quickly, Horfee's technique today combines his early skills - using a spray can at fast pace - with a classical approach to painting and sculpture. As a result, his work is marked by dynamic spontaneity and technique of the established.
DANIEL WEISSBACH (GER)
Daniel Weissbach immortalizes the ordinary and gives space to the unsolicited with art that honors the detritus of life, bringing our attention to their existence with eye-catching and alluring aesthetics.
He uses acrylic on canvas to create a shiny lacquered surface that serves as a platform for his imitations of dirt, scribbling, spray paint, old stickers, chewing gum, and other often overlooked items. This provides the essence and shape of the artworks that form the German artist’s ongoing Stellen (Places) series, which highlights areas of our urban environment that recall underground stations and swimming halls.
The works represent the man-made grids that give us the power of control and the ability to organize our lives, while making us aware of the alternative paths next to these tidy grids.
TOM KRÓL (GER)
Clowns, cats and superheroes all inspire Tom Król. Informal art is his main source of inspiration: a child’s chalk drawing on the pavement, or an advertisement seen on a billboard in the street. The origin doesn’t matter, as long as the motif is catchy and comprehensible.
The young German artist translates what our eyes glimpse but barely notice on a daily basis. Król captures the forgotten and ephemeral. His imagery might look naïve at first glance, but on further consideration, its wit can be striking. Through simple black contour lines and the use of iconic symbols and characters, Król manages to skillfully narrate a universe populated with mass media references. The directness and candor of the artworks puts a smile on the viewer’s face.
DEVIN TROY STROTHER (US)
Devin Troy Strother is known for his intricate alternative narratives in a variety of mediums (mixed-media, sculpture, neon, and installation). He finds inspiration in snippets of overheard conversations, movies, television, music, stand-up comedy podcasts, and the work of numerous canonic artists such as Joseph Cornell, Marcel Duchamp, and Henri Matisse (whose cutouts are put in mind by Strother’s exuberant collage constructions). Strother likes to incorporate humor and language relevant to his peers and does not shy from the outrageous; his titles often serving as the punch line.
Strother received his BFA from Art Center College of Design, Pasadena, CA in 2009. He completed a residency at Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture in Skowhegan, Maine in 2010. His works are in the permanent collections of: The Los Angeles County Museum of Art; The Santa Barbara Museum of Art; and the Studio Museum in Harlem. They are also in prominent private collections all over the world.
