Menu
The New Contemporary Art Magazine

Svenja Maaß’s Multilayered, Surreal Paintings

Germany native Svenja Maaß creates paintings that are understood in waves, bringing heads to turn and speculate on each’s interworkings. Creatures seem to exist on differing planes than other components of the piece. Or as one gallery says, she describes her methodology “as a process which forces her and us to rethink again and again. Only slowly are things allowed to grow together.”

Germany native Svenja Maaß creates paintings and collages that are understood in waves, bringing heads to turn and speculate on each’s interworkings. Creatures seem to exist on differing planes than other components of the piece. Or as one gallery says, she describes her methodology “as a process which forces her and us to rethink again and again. Only slowly are things allowed to grow together.”



“In her pictures and collages, (she) knits together different elements that figure into complex wholes,” a statement says. “ Unlike humans, animals cannot be identified according to clothing, jewellery and other formalities; they don’t obey such codes, and for Svenja Maaß are more original, timeless figures. The precisely drawn, partly surreal motives form bits of stories with open endings. Svenja Maaß uses different backgrounds – canvases, metal or even transparent parchment – which allows the subject to almost float in the picture. The complex images go against the audience’s expectation and are not easy to decipher spontaneously.”


The effect of this approach can bring ghostly and at times, eerie results. The artist’s fascination with the animal world, along with interjections of pop elements, create worlds that are as mysterious as they are engrossing.

Meta
Share
Facebook
Reddit
Pinterest
Email
Related Articles
Fluffy, soft and vulnerable, the bunny may be the ultimate metaphor for the naiveté of childhood. New Orleans-based artist Alex Podesta creates mannequin-like sculptures of men dressed in bunny suits, often playing with stuffed rabbits, as an examination of early childhood development and the formation of self-awareness. Presented as doppelgangers or gangs of identical multiples, Podesta's characters follow the trails of their curiosity, playing and experimenting with the limits of the world around them. "In all of my recent work I have culled the rich fantasies, daydreams, misconceptions and experiences of childhood and re-contextualized them through the filters of adulthood, experience and education," wrote Podesta in his artist statement. Simultaneously unsettling and endearing, the adult characters in his work shed the pretensions of seriousness and masculinity, engaging in free-form play that often becomes lost as one comes of age.
"Bhabharosi" at Nicodim Gallery in Los Angeles is the first solo show from Simphiwe Ndzube outside Cape Town, South Africa, the artist's hometown. The strange, headless and limbless figures that travel throughout the paintings and sculptures of Ndzube have their own mythology. Read about the lore below:
Berlin-based artist Yusk Imai creates fragmented monochromatic figures that draw upon a variety of artistic styles. Previously featured on our blog, Imai's work channels themes found in Art Nouveau, as in his ornate detailing, or Surrealism, in more bizarre renderings, to modern day comic books. Often, these themes address the idea of an uncontrollable world all around us, whether through psychology, symbolism, or the supernatural. In his most recent works, Imai tries to understand the psychology behind feelings like forgetfulness and distraction. These explorations often take him "elsewhere", to some strange other-world within his subconscious that is governed by dark characters.
Landau In “The Changing Landscape,” San Francisco painters Anthony Holdsworth and Beryl Landau take a look at the same cityscape with drastically different approaches. Luna Rienne Gallery says it’s the first dual show from the pair featuring San Francisco landscapes. Each tell the story of a city constantly changing and growing. The show runs through May 28 at the gallery.

Subscribe to the Hi-Fructose Mailing List