Ryan McLaughlin
03 Nov - 22 Dec 2012
RYAN MCLAUGHLIN
Barbara
3 November - 22 December 2012
Ryan McLaughlin at Lüttgenmeijer
The first view surprises: everything appears painterly but also as if in a comic.
The subjects are succinct and simultaneously immovable in their composition. Sincerity can be detected, but still there are scenes full of wit and irony. From where does this feeling of enclosure come – from this loose brushstroke?
The second glance opens up a room full of reminiscences and references.
McLaughlin’s works stand firmly on art historical ground but never allow doubt concerning their contemporary nature.
They are everyday commodities, which the artist transfers into two-dimensions.
Clear shadows, as with a photo made with flash, give the objects plasticity and volume; however the pictorial space stays diffuse in its depth effect because of the frontal view of the objects. The figurative painting reaches a level of abstraction in which things transform from pure image to sign. In McLaughlin’s images the typology of a classic comic connects to the formal astringency of Max Beckmann. The pictures should work simply and distinctly.
In much still life the mathematically constructed composition creates a startling clarity: through separations, diagonals and angles; a refinement which can be found in the works of the French Baroque painter Chardin.
The new works are painted in a mix of oil paint and egg tempura. McLaughlin uses this technique, first of all for its flat surface texture, but he also demonstrates with this a self-confidence in his graphic mastery. After preparing several studies, each brushstroke is placed freely and confidently. The loose generality with which mostly floral imagery is depicted is a charming obeisance to the painters of the French Rococo such as Watteau or Boucher. The decorative characteristics of the drawing style bring a new ease to the works. They obtain their power and charisma from the referentially rich coexistence of opposites.
Oliver Hell, October 2012
The arrangements can be read almost in a heraldic way. The work „Findet Martina“ („Finding Martina“, 2012) shows a tennis racket in front of a type of pedestal for a monument. Next to the laurel and strawberries (which are traditionally consumed with cream during the Wimbledon tournament) there are mussels and crabs cavorting on the canvas. Apart from being a laconic link to the tradition and exclusivity of this sport and a bow to the great tennis player Martina Navratilova, it also works as a remembrance of McLaughlin’s childhood home, the American East Coast. The artist has lived in Berlin for several years and the city takes over ever more space in the newer works. Whether the artist engages with Schinkel candelabra or badly realised buildings such as those on Kottbusser Tor – one can always detect his examination of figure and plane, with dark contours and colourful inner structures.
Barbara
3 November - 22 December 2012
Ryan McLaughlin at Lüttgenmeijer
The first view surprises: everything appears painterly but also as if in a comic.
The subjects are succinct and simultaneously immovable in their composition. Sincerity can be detected, but still there are scenes full of wit and irony. From where does this feeling of enclosure come – from this loose brushstroke?
The second glance opens up a room full of reminiscences and references.
McLaughlin’s works stand firmly on art historical ground but never allow doubt concerning their contemporary nature.
They are everyday commodities, which the artist transfers into two-dimensions.
Clear shadows, as with a photo made with flash, give the objects plasticity and volume; however the pictorial space stays diffuse in its depth effect because of the frontal view of the objects. The figurative painting reaches a level of abstraction in which things transform from pure image to sign. In McLaughlin’s images the typology of a classic comic connects to the formal astringency of Max Beckmann. The pictures should work simply and distinctly.
In much still life the mathematically constructed composition creates a startling clarity: through separations, diagonals and angles; a refinement which can be found in the works of the French Baroque painter Chardin.
The new works are painted in a mix of oil paint and egg tempura. McLaughlin uses this technique, first of all for its flat surface texture, but he also demonstrates with this a self-confidence in his graphic mastery. After preparing several studies, each brushstroke is placed freely and confidently. The loose generality with which mostly floral imagery is depicted is a charming obeisance to the painters of the French Rococo such as Watteau or Boucher. The decorative characteristics of the drawing style bring a new ease to the works. They obtain their power and charisma from the referentially rich coexistence of opposites.
Oliver Hell, October 2012
The arrangements can be read almost in a heraldic way. The work „Findet Martina“ („Finding Martina“, 2012) shows a tennis racket in front of a type of pedestal for a monument. Next to the laurel and strawberries (which are traditionally consumed with cream during the Wimbledon tournament) there are mussels and crabs cavorting on the canvas. Apart from being a laconic link to the tradition and exclusivity of this sport and a bow to the great tennis player Martina Navratilova, it also works as a remembrance of McLaughlin’s childhood home, the American East Coast. The artist has lived in Berlin for several years and the city takes over ever more space in the newer works. Whether the artist engages with Schinkel candelabra or badly realised buildings such as those on Kottbusser Tor – one can always detect his examination of figure and plane, with dark contours and colourful inner structures.