The artist resides and works on the northern outskirts of Assen, in a rich archaeological area of old cart tracks, remnants of prehistoric dwellings, imprints of vanished farms, and a valley stream. His fascination for soil stratification in time was sparked by an unearthed Roman treasure in his hometown of Beilen. For instance, a map of the Balloërveld hangs in his studio. This displays all the zones, speckles, lines, former watercourses, and even a tank trench. By examining this, one can immediately grasp the subject matter of his work, and where the title of his latest exhibition, ‘Traces of Traces,’ comes from. True to form, his abstract paintings do indeed tell a story. They are not mere illustrations for an archaeological narrative; they are the story itself, not as a collection of anecdotes, but as the universal tale of the stratification of things. Translated into his own unique idiom.
www.ftn-books.com has the TRACES book by Lanjouw now available.
