Exhibition Palazzo Martinengo Fortuny, Venezia 2019
“Early Works” for Venice Art Biennale
From 2002 Sylke von Gaza studied "Freie Malerei" under the Irish-American painter Sean Scully at the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich. She graduated in 2007 with the award "Meisterschülerin". One of the central elements of Scully's teaching dealt with the question: "What does it mean to find its own form of expression?"
In addition to the tradition of Abstract Expressionism conveyed by Scully, minimalist and monochrome aspects played a central role in von Gaza's path towards her "non-negotiable", which was reinforced by a stay in New York in 2005. Sylke von Gaza's early work reflects her excessive preoccupation with the reductionist approaches of Robert Ryman or the conceptualized emotionality of Agnes Martin. In von Gaza's workgroup Early Works, created during this time, the genesis of her typical "Veil Paintings"-form can be traced, which then finally lead to iconic works such as Grey Veil Painting 14 (Hudson Painting, oil on canvas, 160 x 240 cm, 2006).
For this 2019 Biennale season, a selection of Sylke von Gaza's Early Works is on display in Palazzo Martinengo Fortuny, an inconspicuous, run-down palazzo facing the Grand Canal in Venice, situated between the Guggenheim Museum and the Pinault Collection's Punta della Dogana. This palazzo is known as the first studio of the Spanish universal genius Mariano Fortuny who lived there at the beginning of the 20th century. A visit to Sylke von Gaza’s atelier in Venice gives a deep insight into her good 10-year long artistic journey and her continuous research and reevaluation between self-restraint and "not wanting" up to this day. Still, at the beginning of each painting stands, in Agnes Martin's words, ‘the necessity of the simple direct going into a field of vision as you would cross an empty beach to look at the ocean.’
Invitation "Sylke von Gaza - Early Works" ▸
Where: Palazzo Martinengo Fortuny Venezia ▸
May - September 2019
From left to right: Bright White on Grey 2, oil on canvas, 160 x 160 cm, 2005, Green on Grey Haze, oil on canvas, 180 x 150 cm, 2004, White Strokes on Beige 2, 160 x 160 cm, 2005.
Historic Front View of Palazzo Martinengo Fortuny in Venice, ca. 1900. (Foto: Mariano Fortuny)
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