Going back in time: Daniel Gould’s 3D List, Art in Amsterdam #52

The weekend of the 10th September was more or less the official beginning of Amsterdam's new Art Season 2011-2012. But where were the crowds? A few galleries did have a good attendance, but this was NOT the rule. Of course, Open Monument Day was both Saturday and Sunday and perhaps some of those people opted for the spacial classical buildings over pretty pictures. There was a silver lining though, two galleries had three red dots or more. Not much to brag about, but you gotta wag the flag whenever possible...Or something like that. 

INDEX:

Bits & Pieces:

Museum Review:

What You Missed Last Week: 

BITS & PIECES: 

Between the 26th (Monday) and the 28th of September, STEIM offers five individual sound/music workshops. Some are FREE for those attending the three day festival. What to expect: "Glitch Art Workshop. Learn about Glitch file formats and basic data bending technique. Defile your files and create beautiful works of art by exploiting the errors of digital storage formats." More info at: http://steim.org/archive/patternsandpleasure/ 
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WHAT YOU MISSED LAST WEEK: 

Gineke Zikken hangs oils at Art A Casa (Kerkstraat 411). She paints landscapes in addition to Amsterdam scenes. In a sense, while there are clearly representational, there are geometric abstractions. The defining forms tend to be strongly colored rectangles. It has much to do with her technique of using a palette knife. The results is imagery that you see from two perspectives: reality versus abstraction. (20x40 cms., @ 680 euro; 40x80 cms., @ 1,440; 120x80 cms., @ 2,800 euro.) Four RED DOTS. Until ??? https://bit.ly/2JL0Mff 
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Wessel Huisman is back at Galerie Rademakers (Prinsengracht 570) for his fifth (or more) appearance. He paints cityscape's---New York and Amsterdam---but that is not what his work is all about. All the paintings are in b/w. And, in a way, the imagery is subliminal. That is, it is not detailed architecturally but in another way it is very detailed in its geometric abstraction. You will also see a few interiors of great halls. People are represented but, again, they are little more than an added abstraction. (140x180 cms.,, acrylic in linen, 8,400 euro; 110x150 cms., acrylic on linen @ 6,600 euro.) Until 9th October. https://bit.ly/2JvtSz2 
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"Plastic Drift" is the title of an exhibition for Sarah Laure Engelhard at the new gallery "gCH" (Galerie Cultural Speech) located at Postjesweg 6. At first glance, you assume that Engelhard relies on PhotoShop for these sometimes eerie photographs. Not so! In fact, she poses the scenes. Nothing unusual about that except for one thing, she "poses" the shots underwater. She roams the beaches of the world collecting the plastic debris that washes up to the shoreline. She then scuba dives and swims the ocean floor looking for the right location. Sometimes what you see is a floating Spa-like bottle caught floating in a current; a colander that could be used as a basketball hoop; toys or a laundry baskets. The result is almost surrealistic and an illusion-like composition sometimes accompany with garish colors. Of course, she is also making an environmental statement: Pollution. It may look good on film, but it is still an eyesore and especially if your a fish. There are also four photographs that are back lit. (35.5x47 cms., C-print, dibond, epoxy, aluminum Ed. 15 550; 50x67 cms., ditto C-print etc Ed 10 @ 850 euro; 60x77 cms., ditto C-print etc Ed. 10 @ 1,075 euro.) Until 14th October. https://bit.ly/2NjgosL 
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"C&H art space" (2e Kostverlorenkade 50) is showing Wouter Klein Velderman''s conceptual objects/wall hangings. The wall hangings are geometric/abstractions comprised of say 24 squares and each measuring 10x10x3 cms. The colors range from cream colored shades to shades of white and one has about three shades of green. A standing object is a crudely constructed vitrine with two staffs of carved wood. (78x178x23 cms., lac, synthetic silk, PVC, paper & metal structure @ 2,800 euro; 90x180x58 cms., ditto as before @ 4,400 euro.) Until 22nd October. http://ch-gallery.com/ 
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Hiroku Tsukuda (Japan) is at TEN HAAF PROJECTS (Laurierstraat 248) with dramatic b/w ink drawings. All the work is representational; all the work is geometric/abstraction; all is conceptual. Maybe only a Japanese artist could manage to interject all three of these styles in one composition. The imagery has two subjects: Women and architecture. The women are adorned, fashion wise, like a pin-up. But their "faces" are geometric abstractions. The architectural drawings are meticulous in their perspective element. A few, at first, you assume to be a geometric/abstraction but when you give it time the building's form emerges. (53.5x37.5 cms., black ink on paper @ 700 euro; 150x115 cms., black ink on paper @ 2,500 euro; 115x200 cms., black ink on paper @ 4,000 euro.) Until 22nd September. https://bit.ly/2ux13gg 
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An American, Dan Walsh, is at SLEWE (Kerkstraat 105) with an exhibition that leaves 3D speechless---more accurately, wordless. The show's title is "Time Trials" and "Walsh assembled a collection of objects and visual aides (found and made) creating scenarios or concentrated tableaux to help look at the subject of time." Well, that''s what it is all about, but the explanation doesn''t even hint at what you will see. 3D won''t spoil the fun by even trying. This is his fourth show at the gallery. (51x117 cms., gold and copper triptych, metallic paper @ 4,500 euro; 70x70 cms., mixed-media on metallic paper @ 8,000 euro.) 
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This may be the shortest review 3D has written. I arrived at TORCH (Lauriegracht 94) just as the back gallery lights were turned off. The artist is Philip Akkerman with his recent portrait paintings. He plays with style. You will see series in which the same person is pictured but each piece is very different while remaining very much the same. A series of 15 could best be described as grotesque; the portraits are akin to human gargoyles. (Small @ 4,500 to large @ 8,000 euro.) Until ???? https://bit.ly/2L7qYSK 
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Steendrukkerij Amsterdam is celebrating its 35th year in the art business with an exhibition for Fons Haagmans who has been showing there for almost as long. His paintings are minimalistic representational works and the imagery ranges from portraits to soldiers to still life. Some have an element of drama; others make you contemplate on what you see; and some are just pretty pictures. Damn, forgot to check the price list. So sorry. Until 22nd October. https://bit.ly/2NkuUAi 
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An interesting show both from the artistic point of view and the political/social is at VERVERS (Hazenstraat 54). Tafil, first of all, takes a page from Piet Mondrian. Both his paintings and drawings have crudely defined linear abstraction like those of Mondrian, but then he paints around the lines with imagery that some may find offensive: Nazi soldiers and other Nazi characters. Several works are mixed-media. The artist also employes typography in some works. (110x75 cms., pencil/mixed-media on paper @ 2,000 euro; 85x185 cms., oil on canvas @ 5,500 euro.) Until 14th October. https://bit.ly/2mkqkqc 
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Hmmm...Trouble in paradise...3D stepped into ""witzenhausen GALLERY" (Hazenstraat 60) but out of paper to make notes. I asked for a copy of an invitation. There wasn't one. The assistant said he would make a print out of the press release. Alas, the ball point pen rejected the copy paper and, in frustration, I said to hell with it. Hey, folks, last Saturday there were about 25 openings. I was tiring. But here is a sketch of what to expect. "New Realism" is a selection of work by four "up-and-coming photographers who make use of the photographic medium in different challenging ways, in some ways transcending the medium itself." The works of Eliza Dyball (Australia), Jeff Robb (UK), Camilia Rodrigo Grana (Peru) and Flokje van Lith (NL) are represented. The one photographer that will really get your attention---because of the technique---is Robb. He uses a new technique called lenticular photography which is "a hologram-like image that creates the illusion of depth and the possibility if seeing different sides of the image as we look from different angles." Both examples are nudes. 
No price list. Until ??? https://bit.ly/2zCqZwM 
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Swedish painter Anna Bjerger is at Galerie Gabriel Rolt for the second time. Her "subjects are derived from photographs found in out-of-date reference books, instruction manuals, gardening book and magazines." The works recall the paintings of other artist. But unlike, say Klimt, her brush strokes are strong, bold and assertive; and there is little of the nuances we know from the master. There is vagueness in the imagery; the colors become the focal point. She does it her way. She paints "wet on wet" according to the press release. Her work is in the Stedelijk Museum' collection. (Oil on aluminium; Small @ 3,800 euro; large @ 10,000 euro.) Until 15th October. https://bit.ly/2nFBTck 
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What 3D appreciates about "new jewelry" is that you never know what to expect; and, to play safe, always expect the unexpected. Ruuft Peters, at Galerie Rob Koudijs (Elandsgracht 12) does images of Christ on the cross...almost. He molds the imagery in polyurthane, paints it in black, then saws it in half and presents the backside---with the flat surface----as the focal point. 3D, at first, assumed that you had an option as to what side you selected until it dawned on me that the pointed pins, that penetrate the material to mount them to the chest, were on the side of the imagery. The impetus for this seemingly subversive attack on religious iconic imagery is meant to convert the brooch into an abstraction with only a hint of the representational. As Peters told 3D, "It''s not about Christ." Hey, that's cool! There was a FREE take-away brooch offered at the opening. See what you miss by NOT going. Three RED DOTS. (Brooch @ 1,950 to 2,150 euro; brooch, small, Ed 7 @ 450 euro; Necklace @ 2,100 to 2,900 euro.) Until 15th October. http://www.galerierobkoudijs.nl/nl
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Two artists are at RON MANDOS (Prinsengracht 282). Par Stromberg (Sweden) paints in b/w and shades of gray. The imagery reflects the world of the midnight sun. Haunting, melancholy hints of mystery and an element of angst sort of defines the work. But the best part is, it is all very pleasing. Nice work! (30x40 cms., w/c on paper @ 1,190 euro; 40x50 cms., oil on canvas @ 2,600 euro; 80x60 cms., oil @ 4,200 euro; 180x240 cms., oil @ 14,500 euro.)...Steif Desmet is a sculptor working in bronze and iron, as well as other materials like the black deer with a arrow protruding through its body which is made from polyester. His piece de resistance, in this show, is an 80 kg lion cast in bronze. He bought a 30 euro plastic "lion"----Made in China---and made a mold and casted it. Then he segmented it into four sections. This sort of turns the King of the Jungle into an abstraction of itself. (65x30x18 cms., Polyester, Ed. 3 @ 2,500 euro; 140x110x45, Polyester, gold leaf, earth, Ed 3 @ 7,500 euro; 120x50x55 cms., bronze Lion, Ed 3 @ 20,000 euro.) Until 15th October. https://bit.ly/1NONWvU 
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Scarlett Hooft-Graafland has a large solo exhibition at Museum Huis Marseille (Keizersgracht 401). The photographs resulted from visits to a wide variety of world' locations. There is a series of photos taken in rural China featuring the natives in traditional ceremonial dress. Another series features the salt flats of Bolivia and, again, locals in traditional costumes. In addition, there is a conceptual element in several of these photos. Photographs of Norway's northern tundra are often dramatic in their starkness. A series of three show enormous herds of reindeer. And there are a few surprises too. At the small gallery, off the reception area, of the museum, there are photos of Dutch windmills. But banal they are not; the blades of the windmills have been visually enhanced with red thread. And wait until you see the seven by five meter carpet in the lower level gallery. Beautiful...And you can walk on it after taking off your shoes. Until 20th November. https://www.huismarseille.nl/ 
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Four artist kick off the 32nd season for Galerie De Witte Voet (Kerkstraat 135). 3D was moving fast on this busy Saturday so this is a quick overview of the work of Jeroen Heerweegh, Aniek Meeldijk, Irja Syvertsen and Jentel Wuytack.. One artist shows 14 pots which are more or less traditional in design and concept. The other three take ceramics to the edge with conceptual designs that range from blobs to organic-like sculpted objects. Add to that the one artist that mixes ceramic with textile that you might say rise to the occasion from the floor to the ceiling. All are recent graduates of an art academy. (Reasonable prices of 200 to 900 euro.) Until 12th Ocotber. https://bit.ly/2NSLxnD 
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Realism is alive and well at Galerie Mokum (OZ Voorburgwal 334) with the work of Pedro Escalona (Spain). 3D describes his paintings as contemporary impressionism with geometric/abstract nuances. The imagery is basically still life's; he paints small pots, vases and other small containers. But the colors are subdued so while there is plenty of color to see you are not overwhelmed by it. (27x37 cms., oil on panel @ 2,800 euro; 30x40 cms., oil on panel @ 3,000 euro; 81x130 cms., oil on panel @ 10,000 euro.) Until 9th October. http://www.galeriemokum.com/ 
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Galerie Gerhard Hofland (nee: Aschenbach & Hofland) on the Bilderdijkstraat (165) shows Hans Broek's "Delacroix Makes a Movie." He takes a page from both the Book of Style by Delacroix and the history of 19th century art and adds elements of the Soviet realism school. As to the 19th century element, we see two views: The grand ball and Revolution. (33x30 cms., oil @ 2,250 euro; 50x104 cms., oil @ 5,500 euro.) ...Also on show is the work of Andreas Albrectsen whose pencil drawings are representational though a few have conceptual or surreal embellishments. Beautifully detailed with great contrast. (10x20 cms., pencil on paper @ 600 euro; 50x70 cms., pencil on paper @ 750. N.B. Sizes are paper sizes and not that of the image.) Until 8th October. http://gerhardhofland.com/en/ 
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Sculptor work by Anya Gallaccio (Scotland) is featured at "annet gelink gallery" (Laurierstraat 187). She works in stone and lets the stone become a conceptual inspiration. One huge stone is from the States but she made a mold of it, cast it in bronze and now there is a "reflection" of itself in another part of the gallery. The actual stone she has covered with a broken safety glass window which she found partially buried in the desert. Also on view are six photographs which depict real sand photographed with an electronic microscope. The results are beautiful geometric/abstract compositions. Damn...Where's the price list? Until 22nd Ocotber. https://bit.ly/2u9Hxa3 
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RADAR: Architecture & Art (Rozengracht 77) has two interesting series of photographs on view by Chidi Onwuka (Nigeria/UK/NL). Both have a theme of deconstruction and one features the old CS-post office; the other the Wibauthuis on the Wibautstraat. An interesting fact in regard to the CS-post office is that he shows the area surrounding the building and uses its interior---the windowless window frames---to crop the exterior scene. The light is ambient which lends to the melancholy of the subject matter. (60x40 cms., lambda print @ 650 euro.) Until 10th October. https://bit.ly/2AmjWZr 
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"smith * vissers GALERIE" (Noorderdwarsstraat 7) hangs the work of Nadia Gyr (Swiss) who paints in the style of a contemporary impressionist. She paints seascapes in white, blue and aquamarine. Gyr includes brush strokes that recall the Pointillist of the early part of the 20th century. But there is another side to her oeuvre. She hangs a series of Chinese ink drawings of plant life. They are exquisite and very elegant. In addition, there is a series of photographs which could have been the inspiration for her paintings. But she spices them up with an over painting of gouache which enhances both the ocean's color and affects of the light. (55x65 cms., Chinese ink, Chinese glitter paper and carton @ 300 euro; 30x45 cms., gouache on photograph @ 350 euro; 100x130 cms., egg tempera on linen @ 2,750 euro.) Until 1st October. https://bit.ly/2OVDLt0 
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PS Project Space is at a new location in the east of Amsterdam: Madurastraat 72, just of the Javastraat. Ironically, the space isn't any larger than the previous one at Karin and Jan van der Ploeg's living room on the Leidsekade; well not in width and length, but the height is a staggering 450 cms. The first person to show in the space is Frank Ammerlaan (NL). Only five works on are on display and that is generally the most in number for any exhibition at PS: "Less is more" could be its slogan and raison d' etre. However, the five pieces are an excellent overview of this young artist' oeuvre---he graduated from the Gerritt Rietveld Akademie in 2007. One large painting appears to be in monochromatic black but, wait, look at it from another angle and you see hues of blue and from another perspective nuances of green. Nice! Another work is also monochromatic but it is enhanced by linear gold thread which is woven to create a geometric linear abstraction. There is sort of an Escher touch in that it only seems to adhere to an actual perspective. A very small sculpture piece is circular in an outward form but is manifested by several geometric elements. Ammeriaan was a recipient of the Gerrit Reitveld Academy Award for Painting. THREE RED DOTS!!! (21.3x28.5 cms., ink jet print, Ed. 5 @ 950 euro; 200x170 cms., oil on canvas @ 4,000 euro.) Until 23rd October. https://bit.ly/2PxZA33 
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Looking for something spectacular? Go no further than to Galerie Jos Art (KNSM-laan 291). Look through the front windows and cast your eyes on the 570 cms., sculpture/object. It is modeled after a giant construction crane and made from wood. It is accurate to a fault and the gears adjusts and the ropes do their thing. And the artist, Ivo Weber, interjects a touch of humor. At the end of the hook of the crane there is a platform with two minks sitting at a table. You will marvel at the intricacy of this wooden structure and its detail. It required two full days to assemble at the gallery site. The title is "Blue Monday" and it will set back your bank account by only 24,000 euro...Along the walls, and complimenting the "crane," is the work of Zandra Harms who does w/c washes with pen & ink. The drawings are conceptual figurative, but the figurative isn''t what gets your attention as much as how she achieves it. The imagery has a fairy tale quality making them probably as pleasing to children as to adults (29.5x23 cms., w/c + pen & ink, 450 euro)...Frank Lenferink paints what might be best described as conceptual geometric representational work. Hard to do! He will take a banal light unit and represent it three times---each slightly different in dimensions---that result in a study of balance and light. All the work is linear and stresses the straight line and its relationship with form all around us in the most common subject matter: Think books or a radiator. (45x25 cms., oil @ 1,750 euro; 75x100 cms., oil @ 4,375 euro.) Until 2nd October. https://bit.ly/2KTfwOo 
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Well, that's it! A few RED DOTS, but certainly not enough. What to do? Buy, Buy and BUY some more. That's what...And there goes 3D with his trusty six-shooter looking for a bank that still handles cash...

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