Arvid Boecker

Arvid Boecker
Born1964 (age 59–60)
NationalityGerman
Known forConcrete art, abstract art
MovementColor field painting
Title "#512", 2007, 98×197 inches, in the foyer of a law company in Mannheim, Germany

Arvid Boecker (born 1964) in Wuppertal) is a German painter and curator. He is a representative of concrete art and focuses on color field painting.

Biography

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Arvid Boecker studied from 1987 to 1989 at the University of Trier Art history, continuing his studies at the Hochschule der Bildenden Künste Saar in Saarbrücken.[citation needed] There he studied until 1994 with the professors Jochen Gerz, Bodo Baumgarten, and Ulrike Rosenbach.[citation needed] In the following years he was Artist-in-residence in London (Acme Studios, 1994-1995), in Katwijk aan Zee in the Netherlands (1995-1996), on the Isle of Skye (2005), in La Ciotat in southern France in 2006, and in 2018 he went to Paris for a residency at Factory49.[1]

Since 1996 Boecker has been a member of the Saarländischer Künstlerbund[2] and since 2019 he is also a member of the Künstlerbund Baden-Württemberg.[3] He lives and works in Heidelberg, since 2018 he also has a studio in Frankfurt am Main.[4]

Large exhibition room Heidelberger Kunstverein
Arvid Boecker Milk & Honey, 2005
Blue picture left: Title "#313", 2004, Oil on canvas, 95×67 inches
Red picture in the background: Title "#314", 2004, Oil on canvas, 95×67 inches)

Artistic work

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Arvid Boecker's theme as an artist is color itself. He uses oil paint, which he manufactures himself from pigments and applies to canvas. Since priming the canvases requires long drying times, Boecker always creates entire rows of canvasses with the same dimensions, on which he then alternately works. He numbers the images and adds a hash tag to them, for example: "#1103". He describes these series as "picture families". Arvid Boecker determines right at the beginning how he deals with the surface, dividing it up for certain color applications. His works are either rectangular or square. Since 2014 Boecker has concentrated on the format 20×16 inches, which he divides by a longitudinal line into two fields, which he then paints with different colors.[5] The color is applied in up to 40 layers, partly wash, partly impasto. Arvid Boecker uses squeegees to remove older layers of paint or applies new layers of paint with the painting knife.[6] This processing can take up to one year.[7]

Exhibition view 2018 at the Verein für aktuelle Kunst Ruhrgebiet e.V., Oberhausen, Germany
The photo shows the works titled "#1156", "#1167", "#1173", "#1176", all oil on canvas, 2018,
20×16×3 inches

During this long period, his pictures mature. Boecker often interrupts the work on a painting to give it time to dry. The painting of a piece for him thus becomes a process of reflection on the function of color and its effects. The artist reflects upon, how which effect is produced in the viewer, how the colors do interact with each other and to which result: "So wird der Maler manchmal zum Forscher in seinem eigenen Werk, indem er wie ein Archäologe alte Schichten und Zustände sucht und wieder zum Vorschein bringt. Er ist Schöpfer und Zerstörer in einem, lässt entstehen und löscht wieder aus, kreiert und verwirft. Aber nicht aus einer Laune heraus, sondern immer im Hinblick auf das Gelingen des Bildes als Ganzes." (in English: "Thus the painter sometimes becomes a researcher in his own work, searching for and revealing old layers and states like an archaeologist. He is creator and destroyer in one, lets arise and extinguishes again, creates and rejects. But not on a whim, but always with a view to the succeeding of the picture as a whole.")[8] The painting created in such a long working process clearly shows the traces of its creation, e.g. through shadows - darker layers of paint were painted over by light ones – or through scratches, which allow views of the older layers of paint.

Boecker also designs entire room concepts, e.g. 2012 for the Städtische Galerie Neunkirchen. For this exhibition he created 40 square works, which again were divided into smaller squares and painted with different colors. In addition, he structured the exhibition space with specially made colored tuffets and wall markings with colored adhesive tape that stretched from the wall to the floor and formed a rectangle.[9][10] This three–dimensional installation was intended to enable the viewer to reflect on how he perceives the works of art in the room. In 2016 Boecker created a triptych for the Stiftskirche Sunnisheim in Sinsheim, consisting of three pictures of the same format, which were created especially for this room.[11]

Boecker sees himself as a "travelling observer".[12] His stays abroad, e.g. 1995 in Katwijk aan Zee in the Netherlands, 2005 on the Isle of Skye and 2006 to La Ciotat he perceives as research expeditions concerning light and colors. Katwijk has already had an international artists' colony in the 19th century.[13] La Ciotat in southern France has also always attracted artists, because of the sharply defined contrasts in the southern light conditions by the sea, and the harbor atmosphere, which fascinated the artists already at the beginning of the 20th century. The Isle of Skye is famous for its foggy coastline, which often makes the light diffuse and shimmer.

Boecker assimilates all these impulses and experiences in his works: "Was ich auf meinen Bildern male, sind Erinnerungen" (in English: "What I paint in my canvases are memories")[12] However, not memories in the sense of landscape pictures, but memories that every artist carries with him unconsciously or consciously and that influence his art. The long duration of the creation of his artworks allows Arvid Boecker a kind of meditative approach. In the months until the completion of a work he can reflect extensively on the effects of the application of paint, he can put his piece away for a while and continue to work on another, he can constantly look at and work on the canvases with squeegees and spatulas until they reflect exactly the expression he wants to achieve. Viewed from a distance, they sometimes almost look like monochrome works and only when one goes closer one recognizes the multitude of different layers that the artist realized in the work. Thus, not only does the production of his art take a lot of time, but the viewer is also required to take his time to perceive all aspects of the works: "Boeckers Werke strahlen Ruhe und Kraft aus – und auch wenn er bewusst jeden Anschein alles Bildhaften vermeidet, bieten sie dennoch eine Projektionsfläche für eine Vielzahl an Assoziationen." (in English: "Boeckers' works radiate calmness and strength – and even if he consciously avoids any appearance of anything pictorial, they nevertheless offer a projection screen for a multitude of associations."[14]

Solo exhibitions (selection)

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  • 1996: unentwegt,[15] Forum Kunst Rottweil, Rottweil, Germany
  • 2005: Milch und Honig,[16] Heidelberger Kunstverein, Heidelberg, Germany
  • 2006: Kilmuir Walk,[17] Villa Goecke, Krefeld, Germany
  • 2007: Studio La Ciotat,[18] Galerie Robert Drees, Hannover, Germany
  • 2012: Take your time,[19] Städtische Galerie Neunkirchen, Neunkirchen, Germany
  • 2015: Surfaced from his dive,[20] Galerie Ursula Grashey, Konstanz, Germany
  • 2016: Insomnia,[21] Stout Projects, New York City, United States
  • 2016: On a clear Day,[22] Factory 49, Sydney, Australia
  • 2018: Watching paint dry,[23] Kunstverein Brackenheim, Brackenheim, Germany
  • 2019: Free,[24] (This exhibition was divided into two parts, firstly a solo exhibition of the artist (Free), secondly a group exhibition curated by him as part of his project boeckercontemporary (Breathe).
  • 2020: Arvid Boecker: Malerei,[25] Forum Kunst Rottweil, Rottweil, Germany

Group exhibitions (selection)

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Awards

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  • 1990: 2nd prize, Young Artists Award, Saar Ferngas,[39] Saarbrücken, Germany
  • 1994: Art Award of the City of Landau, Germany
  • 1994: Promotion award of the city of Groß-Gerau GG-Perspective

Projectroom in Heidelberg

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Since 2015 Arvid Boecker has a project room in Heidelberg - boeckercontemporary. Boecker's intention is to establish a "place of encounter with contemporary art" in Heidelberg. Each year, four to six exhibitions of "internationally established positions in non-objective painting" are to be organized. To this end, he collaborates with independent curators worldwide, but also curates several exhibitions himself. The goal of the project space also is to provide more networking in the region and thus to contribute to an active exhibition life. Since 2017, he also realizes exhibitions curated by him at various venues, such as the Galerie Oqbo in Berlin (2017, Better late than ugly) and the Museum St. Wendel (2019, Breathe).

Exhibitions

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  • 2016: Gruppenausstellung Systems of Compliance,[40] (with Christoph Borowiak, Jin-Kyoung Huh, Yoon Jung Kim und Line Krom), 19. to 21. September, curated by Aline von der Asse
  • 2016: Douglas Witmer (Philadelphia): Naranja, 22. July to 19. August, curated by Arvid Boecker
  • 2017: Better late than ugly,[41] OQBO Gallery, Berlin, Germany
  • 2017: Black Box(es),[42] Metz, France (This exhibition was also shown in April 2018 at the Künstlerhaus Saar[43] as well as from 12 April to 4 June 2018 at the Casino Luxemburg Forum d'art contemporain.[44] In 2019 the travelling exhibition was to be seen at La 'S' Grand Atelier, in Vielsalm in Belgium from 5 May to 21 June 2019.
  • 2017: Groupexhibition In Good Shape,[45] (with Michael Bause, Christian Bilger, Frank Eltner, Dirk Lebahn, Seraphina Lenz, Julia Ziegler), 4. March to 7. April, curated by Arvid Boecker
  • 2017: Groupexhibition Timelines Non Objective Art from Australia, (with Emma Langridge, David Weir, Louise Blyton, Terri Brooks, Giles Ryder, Billy Gruner, Sarah Keighery, Richard van der Aa, Kyle Jenkins, Matthew Allen), 21. April bis 19. May, curated by Arvid Boecker
  • 2018: Groupexhibition Absolute,[46] (with Matthew Allan, Emma Langridge, Steven Baris, Stan Van Steendam, Nicholas Szymanski, Mary Bucci McCoy, Kenichi Fujiwara, Robert Dunne, John Tallman)
  • 2019: Free,[47] (This exhibition was divided into two parts, firstly a solo exhibition of the artist (Free), secondly a group exhibition curated by him as part of his project boeckercontemporary (Breathe).

Further reading

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  • Arvid Boecker (2003). Tokyoumbra. Saarbrücken: Saarländisches Künstlerhaus. ISBN 978-3-932294-89-1.
  • Gercke, Hans; Drees, Robert, eds. (2005-03-08). Arvid Boecker: Milch und Honig. Heidelberg: Wolfsbrunnen. ISBN 978-3934322035.
  • Kleinsimlinghaus, Ralph, ed. (2006). Arvid Boecker: Kilmuir Walk. Catalog on the occasion of the exhibition at Villa Goecke. Düsseldorf: Artax Kunsthandel.
  • Arvid Boecker (2010). Alle Zeit der Welt. Katalog zur Ausstellung [All the time of the world. Exhibition catalog]. Düsseldorf: Artax Kunsthandel.
  • Krämer, Harald, ed. (2012-01-01). Arvid Boecker: Take your time. Heidelberg: Kehrer. ISBN 978-3868282832.
  • Verein für Aktuelle Kunst Ruhrgebiet e.V., ed. (2018-07-06). Arvid Boecker: Watching Paint Dry. Exhibition Catalog. Heidelberg: Das Wunderhorn. ISBN 978-3884236048.

References

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  1. ^ "Arvid Boecker". factory49.blogspot.com. Retrieved 2019-02-05.
  2. ^ "Saarländischer Künstlerbund. Arvid Boecker". Saarländischer Künstlerbund. Retrieved 2019-02-05.
  3. ^ "Arvid Boecker". Künstlerbund Baden–Württemberg. Retrieved 2020-09-11.
  4. ^ "Arvid Boecker". Atelierfrankfurt e.V. Archived from the original on 2020-08-14. Retrieved 2020-09-11.
  5. ^ Verein für Aktuelle Kunst Ruhrgebiet e.V., ed. (2018-07-06). "Grenzerfahrungen. Anmerkungen zu den aktuellen Bildern von Arvid Boecker" [Crossing borders. Remarks to the current pictures of Arvid Boecker]. Arvid Boecker. Watching Paint Dry. Heidelberg: Das Wunderhorn. p. 6. ISBN 978-3884236048.
  6. ^ "Ausstellung in Heidelberg. Arvid Boecker: Malerei" [Exhibition in Heidelberg. Arvid Boecker: Painting]. www.artipool.de. Retrieved 2019-02-05.
  7. ^ Ulrike Spiegelhalter (2017-10-25). "Farbschichten erzählen von der Entstehung der Werke" [Layers of paint tell of the creation of the works]. Badische Zeitung. Retrieved 2019-02-05.
  8. ^ Debatin, Sarah (2006). "Selbstvergessen" [Oblivious]. In Kleinsimlinghaus, Ralph (ed.). Arvid Boecker: Kilmuir Walk. Düsseldorf: Artax Kunsthandel. p. 7/8.
  9. ^ "Rückblick 2012: Arvid Boecker - Take your time" [Retrospect 2012: Arvid Boecker - Take your time]. staedtische-galerie-neunkirchen. Retrieved 2021-05-09.
  10. ^ "Zeit für Heidelberger Farbfelder. Arvid Boecker stellt in der städtischen Galerie aus" [Time for Heidelberg color fields. Arvid Boecker exhibits in the municipal gallery]. Saarbrücker Zeitung. 2012-01-23. Retrieved 2019-02-05.
  11. ^ "Ausstellung Atelier und Künstler in der Stiftskirche Sunnisheim, Sinsheim: Arvid Boecker, Vanessa May, Silvia Szabó" [Exhibition atelier and artists in the Stiftskirche Sunnisheim, Sinsheim: Arvid Boecker, Vanessa May, Silvia Szabó]. www.sinsheim.de. Archived from the original on 2018-11-12. Retrieved 2019-02-05.
  12. ^ a b Helga Köbler-Stählin: Bunte Schichten mit Eigenleben. Atelierbesuch bei Arvid Boecker. In: Mannheimer Morgen 2012, 4th of April
  13. ^ Manfred Lachniet (2016-09-18). "Katwijks Strand betörte die Impressionisten" [Katwijk's beach bewitched the Impressionists]. Neue Rhein/Neue Ruhr-Zeitung. Retrieved 2019-02-05.
  14. ^ "Arvid Boecker". www.kunsthaus-artes.de. Archived from the original on 2018-11-12. Retrieved 2019-02-05.
  15. ^ Harald Krämer (1996). Arvid Boecker: Unentwegt. Rottweil: Forum Kunst Rottweil.
  16. ^ Gercke, Hans; Drees, Robert, eds. (2005-03-08). Arvid Boecker: Milch und Honig. Heidelberg: Wolfsbrunnen. ISBN 978-3934322035.
  17. ^ Kleinsimlinghaus, Ralph, ed. (2006). Arvid Boecker: Kilmuir Walk. Katalog anlässlich der Ausstellung in der Villa Goecke [Arvid Boecker: Kilmuir Walk. Catalog on the occasion of the exhibition at Villa Goecke]. Düsseldorf: Artax Kunsthandel.
  18. ^ "Ausstellungshistorie" [exhibition history]. Galerie Robert Drees. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  19. ^ "Arvid Boecker: Take your time". Städtische Galerie Neunkirchen. Archived from the original on 2017-11-01. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  20. ^ "Frühere Ausstellungen. Arvid Boecker, 17. März. – 09.Mai.2015". Galerie Grashey. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  21. ^ "Arvid Boecker: Insomnia". www.nyartbeat.com. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  22. ^ "Arvid Boecker: On a Clear Day". Allevents.in | Events in Marrickville. Archived from the original on 2018-11-11. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  23. ^ Verein für Aktuelle Kunst Ruhrgebiet e.V., ed. (2018-07-06). Arvid Boecker: Watching Paint Dry. Ausstellungskatalog [Arvid Boecker: Watching Paint Dray. Catalog of the Exhibition]. Heidelberg: Das Wunderhorn. ISBN 978-3884236048.
  24. ^ Evelyn Schneider (2019-07-19). "Zwei Austellungen im Museum St. Wendel: Boecker zeigt Werke von sich und von Kollegen" [Two exhibitions in the Museum St. Wendel: Boecker shows works by himself and colleagues]. Saarbrücker Zeitung. Retrieved 2020-09-08.
  25. ^ "Jahresprogramm. Ausstellungen im Jahr 2020" [Annual program. Exhibitions in the year 2020]. Forum Kunst Rottweil. Retrieved 2020-09-11.
  26. ^ "Work Art 23. May 1995 – 17. June 1995". kunstaspekte.art. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  27. ^ Froitzheim, Eva-Marina, ed. (1996-07-01). Artifizielle Natur: Naturansichten von Arvid Boecker, Ulrike Flaig, Rémy Markowitsch, Susanna Messerschmidt, Alice Stepanek und Steven Maslin. Böblingen: Stadt Böblingen. ISBN 978-3928754156.
  28. ^ "Form und Struktur, Wege zur Abstraktion II" [Form and Structure, Paths to Abstraction II]. kunstaspekte.art. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  29. ^ "Tangenten. Saarländischer Künstlerbund. Katalog zur Ausstellung" (PDF). Saarländischer Künstlerbund. 2005-10-17. Archived from the original (PDF, 3,73 MB) on 2010-04-14. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  30. ^ "Rückblick. Amber Room Society: Wir werden nicht gleich übereinander herfallen" [Looking back. Amber Room Society: We won't be on each other's heels right away]. www.kunstverein-augsburg.de. 2013-11-09. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  31. ^ Sabine Graf (2008-05-01). "Schau hin, dein Land macht Kunst!" [Look, your country makes art.]. Saarbrücker Zeitung. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  32. ^ "Winterbilder und geheimnisvolle Zwischenwelten. Zwei Ausstellungsprojekte im Museum Pfalzgalerie Kaiserslautern" [MWinter pictures and mysterious intermediate worlds. Two exhibition projects in the Museum Pfalzgalerie Kaiserslautern]. Museum Pfalzgalerie Kaiserslautern. Retrieved 2020-06-21.
  33. ^ "Galerie Robert Drees. Historie über die Einzel– und Gruppenausstellungen" [Robert Drees Gallery. History of the solo and group exhibitions]. Galerie Robert Drees. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  34. ^ "Sandwiches". art4d.com. Retrieved 2019-02-07.
  35. ^ "Trans Group Show". 2017-07-17. Archived from the original on 2018-11-12. Retrieved 2019-02-07.
  36. ^ "Archiv. Ausstellungen 2018". Verein für aktuelle Kunst/Ruhrgebiet e.V. Retrieved 2019-01-07.
  37. ^ "Ansichten XXXI. "4ABSTRACTs2NOT". www.quadrart-dornbirn.com. Retrieved 2019-02-07.
  38. ^ "Abstract Project. Avant". www.abstract-project.com. Retrieved 2019-02-07.
  39. ^ Giesela Fiedler-Bender (1990). Förderpreis Junge Künstler 1990 [Young Artists Award 1990]. Saarbrücken: Saar-Ferngas-Aktiengesellschaft.
  40. ^ "Systems of Compliance bei boeckercontemporary". Blog of the curator Aline von der Assen. 2016-01-30. Retrieved 2019-02-07.
  41. ^ "Arvid Boecker Better Late Than Ugly". www.oqbo.de. Retrieved 2019-02-07.
  42. ^ "Black Box(es). Gallery Faux Mouvement, Metz; Centre d'art contemporain, Metz". metz.curieux.net. Archived from the original on 2018-11-11. Retrieved 2019-02-07.
  43. ^ "Ausstellung Black boxes im Künstlerhaus" [Exhibition Black boxes at the Künstlerhaus]. Saarbrücker Zeitung. 2018-04-04. Retrieved 2019-02-07.
  44. ^ "Black Box(es)". Casino Luxembourg Forum d'art contemporain. Archived from the original on 2018-11-12. Retrieved 2019-02-07.
  45. ^ "Ausstellung In Good Shape" [Exhibition: In Good Shape]. OQBO Gallery. Retrieved 2019-02-07.
  46. ^ "Steven Baris: Boeckercontemporary". Pentimenti gallery. Retrieved 2019-02-07.
  47. ^ Evelyn Schneider (2019-07-19). "Zwei Austellungen im Museum St. Wendel: Boecker zeigt Werke von sich und von Kollegen" [Two exhibitions in the Museum St. Wendel: Boecker shows works by himself and colleagues]. Saarbrücker Zeitung. Retrieved 2020-09-08.
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