Here, we ask an artist to frame the essential details behind one of their latest works.
Bio: André Hemer, 41, Vienna/New York (@andrehemer)
Title of work: Troposphere #9 (2023).
Where to see it: “Troposphere” at Hollis Taggart Gallery (521 West 26 Street, New York) until June 24.
Three words to describe it: Sundown, spaces, portal.
What was on your mind at the time: Moving between places, both in mind and body—and having that residue of experience stay with you into the next place and beyond. Painting that captures time and place like a palimpsest.
An interesting feature that’s not immediately noticeable: The background sky in this work is taken from a sunset shot during the Indonesian summer, while imagery of the paint and fauna in the foreground were captured on a late winter’s day in Vienna—although markedly different in experience, both had light move in a similar way by coloring the sky and objects beneath (in particular the piece of black sculpted paint that reflects a similar rose hue to the sky, actually makes it look like a brushstroke… or a piece of licorice).
How it reflects your practice as a whole: Painting is always a representation of a moment in time—so in keeping with my practice this painting fuses a way of making that is particular to the moment (transacting between physical and digital form) while using the most basic forms of human experience (the phenomena of the sky) to generate imagery. When these images are re-materialized into paintings, they become simultaneously old and new.
One song that captures its essence: “Licorice” by MF Doom.
