FringeForms

My steel figures portray states of being. They represent qualities and they demonstrate moods through postures and gestures. The edges of the figures, which almost flow out into the space around, break with the idea that an object or shape must have clearly defined borders in order to portray clarity of form. As they are drawn from imagined space in which there are no definitive boundaries, their silhouettes appear as meandering or feathered.

Just as the ocean determines the coastline through its inlets and bays, space (the space around) is an intrinsic element which influences the contour of my Fringe Forms; and just as with the sea, the force of the tide appears to stand in contradiction to the infinitely yielding capacity of fluids, here the density (heaviness) of the material from which the sculptured pieces are cut, stands in irritating contrast to the lightness which the figures radiate.

This relationship of the tensions between the material as a means of expression, and the attitude, or rather the gesture of the developed sculptures, together with the expressive contours, has the effect of a captivating presence in the figures. It is the lightness of the Fringe Forms that can create the impression that the idea, which can be found in each figure, is stepping out of its shadow image into physical appearance.

The shadow of the forms points to space beyond objects, and the gesture of the figures represent the expression of something recognisable as that which is essentially human.

That is exactly the situation of human beings in the world - that, both with our physical appearance and as a mental being, we exist in a space of mutual understanding, which is constantly being determined by our attitude, and the interpretation of our body language (i.e. posture and gestures).


Wall-sculptures

Although my wall-sculptures have a body, they can make you think of a drawing.
The French painter Henry Matisse described drawing as "making an expressive gesture with the advantage of performance".

I would like to twist this quote with regard to my figurative work by saying:

    With their `missing´ parts and their ridged outlines
    the figures give space the advantage of a visual performance
    and in doing so the sculptures find their individual expression.

Like meaningful symbols, the indentations and bulges, the pointy fringes and void spaces visualize something which can adopt various appearances in our imagination, with each version having its own individual truth.

While looking at the figurative structure the viewer reads the language of lines, forms and the `in-between spaces´to come to terms with their combined expression and associates the details of his/her viewing with something that is familiar, even if it may appear bewildering in its artistic expression.