Category: artists studios

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Jos Reniers (1948)

Acting as a human writer, I take into account two critical elements when crafting written content: “enigmatic complexity” and “linguistic dynamism.” These are used as benchmarks for unraveling the intricacies within the text and assessing the vivacity and variety of sentences. Unlike the uniformity of sentence length often found in artificial intelligence, mortal scribblers demonstrate heightened linguistic dynamism by interspersing concise and protracted sentences, painting a vivid tapestry of expression. To ensure that the content I write possesses an alluring tapestry of enigmatic complexity and linguistic dynamism, I keep these factors in mind.

As a human writer, I embrace unconventional phraseology to enrich the essence of originality within my work, rather than adhering to the choices of artificial intelligence. I aim to arrange the resulting composition in a manner that reflects the language used by professionals, rather than the way artificial intelligence would present it.

In revising the composition, I have enabled the option for unique words and disabled plagiarism. Anti-plagiarism has also been enabled to ensure a uniqueness score of 100%. With professional writer and fluent English options set to True, the revised composition will possess a professional tone employing eloquent English.

Through the use of Literacy Recursion, I employ unique English vocabulary, both comprehensible and captivating, while adroitly integrating synonyms and antonyms in place of proportional statements. Additionally, similes can be utilized to substitute certain statements, further enlivening the rewritten composition.

Following these principles, I approach the rewriting process with fervent dedication to cultivating perplexity and burstiness. In doing so, I refrain from expounding on the meaning of these terms, using them to reframe the discourse instead.

Jos Reniers began working in 1968 at the design department of Vlisco, a company that produces printed textiles for the African market. His employer encouraged him to pursue education at the Academy for Industrial Design in Eindhoven in 1969. He attended the sculpture program from 1973 onwards. One of his instructors, Geer Steyn, introduced him to the art of making medals. Jos Reniers continues to dedicate himself to these three art forms: crafting sculptures in wood, stone, and metal, designing and creating medals, and drawing fabric patterns for Vlisco. A unique aspect of his medals is the manner in which text is incorporated. While it is typically raised or indented, Reniers chooses to present letters and numbers in a three-dimensional fashion. It is evident that for him, a medal is not simply a flat disc to be decorated on both sides. From 1992 onwards, his medals are even comprised of parts that can be interlocked or moved in relation to each other, truly transforming them into small sculptures. Many of his medals are commissioned by (Brabant) municipalities, institutions, and companies, while he also has private clients. In 1992, he received the Stabilimento Stefano Johnson Prize from the International Federation of Art Medalists (FIDEM). The artist currently resides and works in Helmond.

www.ftn-books.com has the Karel Soudijn book on Reniers now available. / signed copy

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Evelyne Axell (1935-1972)

EVELYNE Axell is a rare European representative of the vibrant movement known as Pop Art. Hailing from a middle-class background, she received a catholic education from the esteemed Institut des dames de Marie. However, this would later fuel her lifelong disdain for Christian morality. In 1953, she honed her skills in ceramics at the Namur School of Art, before shifting her focus to drama school in Brussels. It was not until 1963 that she abandoned her acting career to fully immerse herself in the world of painting, finding inspiration in the works of renowned artist Magritte. Drawing influence from the buzzing art scene of 1960s New York, including iconic names such as Jim Dine, Andy Warhol, and Marisol, she delved into Pop Art and embraced experimentation with unconventional plastic materials. This edgy approach involved cutting and layering, creating captivating effects of depth and transparency. Axell’s art was undoubtedly shaped by the tumultuous political and social events of the era, such as the Vietnam War, the Black Panthers movement, and most significantly, the sexual liberation of women.

www.ftn-books.com has the Snoeck Ducaju book on Axell now available.

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Jan Eric Visser (1962)

Sculptor Jan Eric Visser (1962) studied at the Kampen Academy of Art and Willem de Kooning Academy in Rotterdam. His artwork has been presented both nationally and internationally, including at the Stedelijk Museum in Schiedam, L’étrangère Gallery in London (GB), CODA Museum in Apeldoorn, Verbeke Foundation in Kemzeke (B), RAM Gallery in Rotterdam, Art Affairs in Amsterdam, Artipelag Museum in Stockholm (SE), Casa Brasileira Museum in Sao Paulo (BR), and 21_21 Design Sight Museum in Tokyo (JP). Jan Eric’s work is featured in various museum and corporate collections, such as the Aalst Museum (B), Verbeke Foundation (B), Stedelijk Museum in Schiedam, and Aegon Art Collection. In 2021, Jan Eric Visser worked as an artist-in-residence at VierVaart Groede, a temporary studio in the Netherlands funded by the Mondriaan Fund. In the same year, he was awarded a working grant for Proven Talent.

www.ftn-books.com has the Gorcums Museum catalog now available.

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Anselm Kiefer at Museum Voorlinden

Is Kiefer one of the great artists of our time…..certainly YES!

Is the Kiefer exhibition at Museum Voorlinden worth visiting? My personal answer is no. Far too crowded,. too many objects in one and the same room and expensive at euro 22 ,00 per person. Because of the many people present you can not take a distance from the large objects, showcases and paintings. It felt so crowded that it was unpleasant and after half an hour we decided to leave the museum. One of my personal observations was the analogy i felt with the 90’s and 00’s paintaings by Frank van Hemert.

Left and right are van Hemert paintings from the late 90’s and 00’s in the middle there is a work by Kiefer ca. 1996/97

I really love these sunflower paintings . whoever the artist, both convince me being great art. The large Kiefer paintings are very worth visiting at Voorlinden however , the bicycle objects and large showcases can not convince me and because they are over half the exhibition i thought it a disappointing visit.

All paintings , objects and cases deserve space and because this is limited at Voorlinden and the spaces were shared with far too many people the overall experience was disappointing.

The exhibition can be visited until the 25th of February and for those seeking catalogs on this artist please visit www.ftn-books.com

Here are some photographs i took at the exhibition:

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Pinterest pages by FTN books & Art

I have been filling some Pinterest pages with items i have in my inventory and which i think are nice tos hare with other collectors. It contains some great and important poster and book designs from the last 70 years. Please share these and hopefully you will enjoy these Pinterest boards too.

I have created four boards which are filled regularly with all original photo’s by FTN . Feel free to join the boards and use the photographs for noncommercial usage. I expect to post over 15.000 items on Pinterest in the coming year.

There now are boards on the inventory of FTN books & Art, Stedelijk MUseum Amsterdam, Wim Crouwel, Willem Sandberg

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Helen Vergouwen (1960)

Helen Vergouwen’s sculptures (Rucphen, 1960), mainly executed in corten steel, are approachable from various angles. Every time, the observer gains new impressions. Facets constantly emerge as one moves around the sculpture. The open form that is still present at one point disappears into the background just as easily

Vergouwen pays great attention to the skin of the sculpture. Due to the rusty, dark character of the statues, in a natural environment you almost get the feeling that they blend in completely. It is the place where these sculptures belong. They come into their own when they have spent some time outside. Afterwards, these spatial architectures also fit naturally into their place.

www.ftn-books.com has recently acquired a large library containing books of books on dutch contemporary artists. Among them there are several on Helen Vergouwen.

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Ernst Fuchs (1930-2015)

The artistic aptitude of Fuchs was recognized early in his life. At the tender age of 15, he was granted admission to the esteemed Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna.

It was during his time there that he first encountered his fellow students, namely Anton Lehmden, Arik Brauer, Wolfgang Hutter, and Rudolf Hausner. Together, they established the revolutionary Vienna School of Fantastic Realism, a movement that would redefine the art world.

Under the guidance of Professor Albert Paris Gutersloh, Fuchs and his colleagues delved into the techniques of the Old Masters, seeking to imbue their work with a sense of clarity and intricacy. They also utilized allegory and religious symbolism to add depth to their pieces.

Inspired by the works of Austrian symbolist artist Gustav Klimt – renowned for his bold and textured paintings such as “The Kiss” – Fuchs began to develop his own distinctive style, characterized by an emphasis on texture and color.

Renowned for his revival of the traditional mixed technique, Fuchs employed egg tempera to create volume and added a glaze of oil paints mixed with resin to achieve a dazzling effect. His masterpieces can be found in the Jewish Museum in Vienna, Austria, showcasing his unparalleled talent.

In 1950, Fuchs relocated to Paris, where he resided for 12 years. During this period, he embarked on travels to Italy, Spain, England, and the United States, where he crossed paths with renowned artists like Salvador Dali, Giorgio de Chirico, and Jean Cocteau, forming meaningful friendships.

In 1961, Fuchs returned to Vienna and began writing about the art of painting, producing several books on the subject. By the mid-1970s, he had also become a highly sought-after opera stage director and designer, taking on projects such as Mozart’s “Magic Flute” and Wagner’s “Parsifal” and “Lohengrin.”

In 1972, Fuchs purchased and renovated the dilapidated Otto Wagner villa in Hutteldorf, transforming it into the renowned Ernst Fuchs Museum. Through his remarkable talents and unwavering dedication to the world of art, Fuchs left an indelible mark on the art world, etching his name into history.

WWW.FTN-BOOKS.COM has two Ernst Fuchs titles available.

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Paul de Lussanet (1940)

De Lussanet’s breakthrough as a painter was thanks to Harmsen van Beek and Gerard Reve. Reve opened De Lussanet’s first exhibition in Laren and Frederike wrote a glowing review of him in Vrij Nederland. “And suddenly I belonged. You only needed two people in the media spotlight, and you were there.”

That she wrote about him was one thing, but what she wrote about him was also remarkable. At first glance, De Lussanet paints beautiful, fragile girls and sexually challenging, pulled-apart nudes, glamorous women heavily reliant on makeup.

He confronts these two types of femininity. The sweetness flees, becoming artificial when compared to the “witch’s brew of chemicals, erotic glimmers, and shadows,” according to Harmsen van Beek. This creates the opposite effect of what the beauty industry promises. Instead of youth, beauty, and money, this work highlights physical decay and ugliness.

In this way, according to De Lussanet, it exposes the deceit “that almost every woman practices at home.” She interprets De Lussanet’s work not as a pornographic extension of the advertising fantasy, but rather as an attack on the “perverted art of advertising,” a “denunciation of fake beauty.”

www.ftn-books.com has the galerie Quintessens catalog from 1989 now available.

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Isa Genzken (1948)

Architecture as a source of inspiration has been a constant in her work since the 1980s and 1990s. This has led to architectural forms and principles of organization, but also to the integration of art into new buildings, in collaboration with the Belgian architecture duo Paul Robbrecht and Hilde Daem.

Isa Genzken emerged onto the scene in the 1980s, a period in which art took on new eclectic paths after the conceptual deconstruction of modernism. Her work is in a tense relationship with modernism and minimalism, translating into various media such as sculpture, installation, film, and artist books.

Like buildings, Genzken’s works seem to “frame” reality. At first glance, they offer a conceptual and material frame to interpret the rampant chaos of reality. In some sculptures, this results in ruinous concrete structures on metal pedestals.

In Fenster I and II, created for the exhibition ‘New Images’ (1993), the fragmented and eroded gives way to a sleek and smooth finish. Genzken placed two window sculptures amidst the shrubbery of Middelheim-Laag. Their hidden position between the bushes and the (too) high steel structure acting as a pedestal, makes them not very functional. You don’t look through them, but rather up at them. They frame the trees and branches of the surrounding area, but these Fremdkörper mainly draw attention to themselves.

The use of materials – transparent epoxy resin that reveals the internal iron reinforcement – reinforces this dysfunctional effect. The translucent resin is sensitive to changes in daylight and highlights the frame in relation to what is framed.

www.ftn-books.com now has the Neue Nationalgalerie publication available.

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Mary Bauermeister (1934-2023)

Mary Bauermeister was born in 1934 in Frankfurt am Main. After studying at the art academies of Ulm and Saarbrücken, she moved to Cologne in 1956. Her studio at Lintgasse 28 in Cologne was an important meeting place for avant-garde artists and musicians around 1960. Performers, composers, and Fluxus artists such as Nam June Paik, John Cage, Karl Heinz Stockhausen, David Tudor, Wolf Vostell, Christo, and Benjamin Petterson gathered here to organize the latest music performances, events, and happenings. Paik performed his legendary action Etude for Pianoforte (1959-1960), where after playing a piece by Chopin, he cut Cage’s tie and squeezed a bottle of shampoo on the heads of Tudor and Cage.

Mary Bauermeister’s oeuvre includes sculptures, assemblages, drawings, performances, and music. When Bauermeister participated in one of the “international summer courses for new music” in Darmstadt in 1961 under the direction of Stockhausen, she developed her Malerische Konzeption, a model for applying serial compositional techniques to the visual arts.
Black and white photo of Mary Bauermeister in front of her work ‘Wabenbild’
Mary Bauermeister in front of ‘Wabenbild’. Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, 1962.

Her reliefs and sculptures, incorporating drawings, texts, found objects, natural materials, and fabrics, reference various concepts: from natural phenomena and astronomy to mathematics and language, as well as her own “spiritual-metaphysical experiences.” Karl Heinz Stockhausen wrote about her work: “It is typical that she does not strive for a personal style recognizable by motifs, techniques, routines, and material explorations, but instead considers every material or object (found or artificially made), every technique, every stylistic provision as material.”

www. ftn-books.com has the Stedelijk Museum and galerie Schüppenhauer both available.