Philip Taafe
08 Mar - 12 Oct 2008
© Philip Taaffe
Blackburst I, 1980/81, Papiercollage und Gouache auf Masonit, 129 x 119 cm, Privatsammlung, New York
Blackburst I, 1980/81, Papiercollage und Gouache auf Masonit, 129 x 119 cm, Privatsammlung, New York
Philip Taaffe
The Life of Forms. Works 1980 – 2008
08.03.2008 - 29.06.2008
The exhibition surveys the entire oeuvre of American artist Philip Taaffe,
who was born in 1955 in New Jersey. Having first gained international
recognition in the early 1980s with the appropriation art movement, Taaffe
has combined his own conception of abstract art with an exploration of
ornamental imagery. In this sense Philip Taaffe is working towards a
universal “global language of abstraction”, bringing together ornamental
elements from different parts of the world and diverse cultures – Arabic,
Celtic, pre-Columbian, Asian, Japanese etc. – into a “world ornament” on a
square of canvas. In his aesthetic research by way of “visual poems” and
“collective constructions” Taaffe delves deep into the history of forms and
styles, employing a variety of artistic techniques to create paintings with
elaborately layered surfaces. His works give insight into cultures around
the world, which as borrowed ornaments in Taaffe’s paintings repeatedly
enter into surprising dialogues. In a world dominated by globalization
tendencies, Taaffe proves himself to be a mediator between the various
cultures by emphasizing the respective singularity of each. This exhibition
is supported by Volkswagen Bank.
www.kunstmuseum-wolfsburg.de
The Life of Forms. Works 1980 – 2008
08.03.2008 - 29.06.2008
The exhibition surveys the entire oeuvre of American artist Philip Taaffe,
who was born in 1955 in New Jersey. Having first gained international
recognition in the early 1980s with the appropriation art movement, Taaffe
has combined his own conception of abstract art with an exploration of
ornamental imagery. In this sense Philip Taaffe is working towards a
universal “global language of abstraction”, bringing together ornamental
elements from different parts of the world and diverse cultures – Arabic,
Celtic, pre-Columbian, Asian, Japanese etc. – into a “world ornament” on a
square of canvas. In his aesthetic research by way of “visual poems” and
“collective constructions” Taaffe delves deep into the history of forms and
styles, employing a variety of artistic techniques to create paintings with
elaborately layered surfaces. His works give insight into cultures around
the world, which as borrowed ornaments in Taaffe’s paintings repeatedly
enter into surprising dialogues. In a world dominated by globalization
tendencies, Taaffe proves himself to be a mediator between the various
cultures by emphasizing the respective singularity of each. This exhibition
is supported by Volkswagen Bank.
www.kunstmuseum-wolfsburg.de