Thilo Heinzmann
From early on Thilo Heinzmann began to look for ways to detach himself from classical forms of painting and to ask after the possibilities that might be left to the medium. Initially taking the traditional canvas as his ground, he would subject it to a treatment that loosened the given structure of the regular weave before the direct application of painterly gestures in red pigment. Very soon, though, he began to work with cotton, linen or wood, and already in these early years it became clear that Heinzmann was concerned with new formal principles within the discourse of painting, principles that can be located somewhere between tradition and innovation.
At the end of the ‘90s Heinzmann began to work on Styrofoam, a highly fragile, common industrial material. From here on in he assembled his grounds from sheets of Styrofoam cut into various sizes and structures. The resulting lines and planes prescribed a certain rhythm, which decisively influenced the overall result of the painting—the process of painting thus begins with the composition of the ground. Pigment dissolved in epoxy resin was then applied to this pure white structure—a technique that presupposed a rapid working method on account of the drying process, …
From early on Thilo Heinzmann began to look for ways to detach himself from classical forms of painting and to ask after the possibilities that might be left to the medium. Initially taking the traditional canvas as his ground, he would subject it to a treatment that loosened the given structure of the regular weave before the direct application of painterly gestures in red pigment. Very soon, though, he began to work with cotton, linen or wood, and already in these early years it became clear that Heinzmann was concerned with new formal principles within the discourse of painting, principles that can be located somewhere between tradition and innovation.
At the end of the ‘90s Heinzmann began to work on Styrofoam, a highly fragile, common industrial material. From here on in he assembled his grounds from sheets of Styrofoam cut into various sizes and structures. The resulting lines and planes prescribed a certain rhythm, which decisively influenced the overall result of the painting—the process of painting thus begins with the composition of the ground. Pigment dissolved in epoxy resin was then applied to this pure white structure—a technique that presupposed a rapid working method on account of the drying process, facilitating the quick and direct fixing of painterly gestures in the most diverse forms. The result was a variety of compositions and abstract pictures that redefined the relationship of line and plane, shedding new light on the question as to how space is created and where figuration begins. These fundamental problems of painting are still part of Heinzmann’s artistic program today. In the early works, moreover, we already see something that is developed in his later paintings, if in a different form: what appear to be primarily impulsive gestures often prove, on second glance, to be consciously and conceptually placed—calculation and spontaneity, control and chance are consistently brought into new associations.
Heinzmann’s recent solo exhibitions include Galerie Guido W. Baudach, Berlin, Carl Freedman Gallery, London, Galería Heinrich Ehrhardt, Madrid, Bortolami, New York, and Galerie Bernd Kugler, Innsbruck, Austria, among others.
Courtesy of Galerie Guido W. Baudach
Bortolomi Gallery, New York, NY
Galerie Perrotin, Paris, France
Carl Freedman Gallery, London, UK
