Kjell Varvin

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Kjell Varvin (born August 19, 1939 in Bærum near Oslo, Norway) is a mixed media and installation artist and one of the first Norwegian conceptual artists of his generation.

Life

From 1958 Kjell Varvin attended the Norwegian Academy for Handicrafts and the Art Industry in Oslo and then continued his studies at the École nationale supérieure des beaux-arts de Paris , the Academia Bellas Artes de Sevilla, the Academia Bellas in Porto and the Escuela de Artes y Oficios de Barcelona. Study trips through Europe, North Africa, Central and North America as well as Asia followed.

The versatile artist has participated in numerous exhibitions, including the Northern Norway Art Museum, the Vigeland Museum and national biennials.

He is married to the German painter Susanne Kathlen Mader .

plant

Kjell Varvin has been producing drawings, prints, paintings, sculptures and multimedia installations since the late 1950s. He uses geometric shapes without symbolic references. With his abstract style, Kjell Varvin is in the tradition of the constructivists . Formally, the early work is particularly reminiscent of Bauhaus , De Stijl and the Russian avant-garde of the 1920s, especially El Lissitzky .

In 1977 and 1981, Kjell Varvin realized wall drawings for the American minimalist Sol LeWitt . His linear spatial drawings can be seen as a reminiscence of the concept artist from Connecticut, whereby instead of written instructions he follows his instinct and allows the unpredictable.

Since winning an art in architecture project in Bergen in 1993 , Varvin has been creating steel sculptures in various sizes and designs. The sculptures function both autonomously and in different constellations as components of installations. The artist processes found objects and industrial materials such as aluminum plates, plastic pipes, processed marble or wire and combines them with his own works.

Kjell Varvin, O'Hoy, sculpture, welded iron, 1995.
Kjell Varvin, O'Hoy, 1995.

From the 1990s, Varvin also experimented with digital media and image processing programs. The jazz-enthusiastic artist's way of working is characterized by improvisation and experimentation. In his studio in Høvik, new installations are created every day that only exist for a limited period of time before they are photographed and archived as files. Ephemeral installations are also an integral part of his exhibitions.

Exhibitions (selection)

  • 2008: Geometry As Image, Robert Miller Gallery, New York
  • 2009: Valse Wand exhibition, Voorkamer
  • 2009: Exhibition N 6, Tobacco Magazine, Friedrichstal
  • 2010: Norwegian Drawing Biennial, Moss
  • 2011: MOMENTUM 6 Biennial, Moss
  • 2011: Norwegian Sculpture Biennial, Vigeland Museum, Oslo
  • 2014: P / ART, Phoenixhalle, Hamburg-Harburg
  • 2014: Queen's Gambit, Northern Norway Art Museum, Tromsö
  • 2015: Young Pioneers, Kunsthall Oslo
  • 2015: Corner Pieces, Vigeland Museum, Oslo
  • 2015: Festivalexhibit, Gallery Nordnorge, Harstad
  • 2016: Free Geometry, Northern Norway Art Museum, Tromsö
  • 2017: Free Geometry / Unstable Variables, Kunstnernes Hus, Oslo
  • 2019: Jazz Procedure at the Jazz Festival, MR Kunstsenter, Molde

literature

  • Billedkunst 1-2011, 2011
  • Trond Borgen: Arbeider 1993-2001. Om å gå over streken , 2001
  • Lu Pinchang: Western sculpture in the 20th century, p. 56, 1999 Beijing. ISBN 7-80580-556-3 , / J-519
  • Arild H. Eriksen: Kjell Varvin's public artworks, in: Art in public areas 1992-95, KORO, 1996

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Festival of Northern Norway. Retrieved November 19, 2019 .
  2. ↑ CV-VARVIN. Retrieved November 19, 2019 .
  3. ↑ ArtFacts: Kjell Varvin | Artist. Retrieved November 19, 2019 .
  4. ^ On Fragile Structures. A conversation with Kjell Varvin | Anti-utopias. Retrieved November 19, 2019 .
  5. ^ W & v: Kjell Varvin | Unstable variables. In: WARMENHOVEN & VENDERBOS | Designer Fashion Collections | Prêt-à-Porter mode Collecties |. January 7, 2013. Retrieved November 19, 2019 (American English).
  6. ↑ Uten tittel. Retrieved November 19, 2019 (nb-NO).
  7. ↑ Magnetic Magazine. Retrieved November 19, 2019 .
  8. ↑ Trendland. Retrieved November 19, 2019 .
  9. ^ Art criticism Retrieved November 19, 2019 (Norwegian).
personal data
SURNAME Varvin, Kjell
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Norwegian mixed media, installation and concept artist
DATE OF BIRTH August 19, 1939
PLACE OF BIRTH Bærum near Oslo, Norway