 |
| Levi van Veluw, Archive, 205x120 cm. |
 |
| Levi van Veluw, Grid, 205x120 cm. |
 |
| Levi van Veluw, Hole, 73x51 cm. |
 |
| Levi van Veluw, Hole of light, 73 x51 cm. |
I
met multi-disciplinary artist Levi van Veluw, with his “The Origin of the
Beginning” exhibition in 2011 at Ronmandos Gallery. He showcased works from a
series of installations, photographs and videos in which he drew from his own
childhoodmemories to thematically and narratively develop his own brand
ofself-portraiture. The artist had created 3 “rooms” covered withmore than
30.000 wooden blocks, balls and slats respectively (without any digital
manipulation). Each “room” was executed as a life-size installation (4m x 2.5m
x 2.5m). I still remember this amazing works. You can see images of these works
on his personal website: http://www.levivanveluw.nl/work/origin-beginning-0.
The
work of Levi Veluw has been exhibited internationally in leading museums and
institutions,
and is included in both public and private collections, including the Borisan
Collection,
the Caldic Collection, the Ekard Collection and Kpmg.
Levi van Veluw’s Upcoming Exhibitions
2014
“Kunst Vereniging Diepenheim” March 30th until June 1th.
Show:
Installation and drawings
2014
La Galerie Particulière will present 5 new drawings at “Art Paris” and “Drawing
now Paris” 26 March 2014 – 30 March 2014.
2014
Exhibition Villa Mondriaan with films and drawings. May 16th 2014.
2014
La Galerie Particulière, Paris, France (Solo)
2014
Loop Fair Barcelona, Spain (Solo), 3 new films will be presented by Galerie Ron
Mandos at Loop Barcelona. 5, 6, 7 June 2014. At the same time we will present Levi
van Veluw’s new website designed by Julius van der Vaart.
2015
Marres House of Contemporary Art, the Netherlands (Solo)
2015
Rosenfeld Porcini Gallery, London, United Kingdom
New videos of Levi van Veluw Presented
by Galerie Ron Mandos at Loop Barcelona 2014
The
series “The Collapse of Cohesion” consists of films, drawings, installations
and photographs. Whereas the previous series incorporated themes of control,
order and structure, in these works we witness the disintegration of these
elements. Order turns into chaos. Visions of collapsing desks, falling
cupboards and exploding cabinets mark the moment of disruption. Human
structures are affected by forces of nature such as gravity, water and wind and
in this way realigned into a new, natural order of things.
Although
these works play on our fascination for destruction and need for disorder, they
do possess an inherent compositional equilibrium. The physics of falling
objects has a logic that is bound by rules. Every image has been carefully
composed by Van Veluw in preliminary drawing studies. The placement of each
element was not left to coincidence but was a preconceived choice of the artist.
The
role of every discipline and their sequential order in the series has
particular meaning. Every idea originates in drawings, which are subsequently
translated into three-dimensional reality through installations, photographs
and films. This particular sequence is important: the drawing, which acts as
the original artistic impetus, corresponds to the freest phase of expression in
the elaboration of the concept. In drawing, reality is created out of nothing;
traces of carbon or charcoal on a carrier form the base from which everything
is constructed. In contrast, other
disciplines replicate reality by means of its very building blocks; reality is
as it were construed, staged, manipulated.
The
newest instalment in “The Collapse of Cohesion” is a series of short films,
based on drawings.
One
of the drawings presents an image of an archive room, filled with large
structures of cabinets containing more than 1500 neatly arranged icosahedrons.
The
whole arrangement is held in place by the very structure of the cabinets and
the force of gravity, in a fundamental and continuous on-going struggle between
the desire for order and the forces of nature. An unknown cause upsets this
equilibrium and the cabinets are made to topple over. The symmetrical forms are
no longer held in place, gravity takes over, order is turned into chaos.
In
the film, the drawing has been replicated life-size in wood. All the visible
surfaces are covered in carbon powder, and the setting acquires shape only
through the reflection of the light. Reality becomes tangible only through the
experience of lighter or darker hues, as in a drawing.
The
falling apart of the structure is filmed at over 1000 frames per second. After
months of meticulous preparation, this is the only, and crucial, moment over
which the artist has no control. In contrast to the drawing in which the moment
of chaos remains an interpretation by the artist – and is therefore inexorably
linked to him – the film makes it possible to relinquish all and every form of
control. Unpredictability becomes a new factor in this work.
The
time of the event is stretched; the moment measured in seconds becomes a
minute-long occurrence and forms a new reality. Time, because of this massive
slowing, seems to no longer affect the process of disruption. The icosahedrons
float through the air, rotating, the glistening of the light that reflects on
their 20 faces reveals their symmetry in its ultimate form. Entirely free, in
search of a new order. With a great feeling of serenity, the viewer experiences
how gravity gives these elements their new place.
BIOGRAPHY OF LEVI VAN VELUM
Levi
van Veluw was born in the Dutch town of Hoevelaken in 1985 and studied at the
ArtEZ
Institute
of the Arts in Arnhem. Since graduating in 2007, Levi van Veluw has produced
multi-disciplinary works that includes photographs, videos, sculptures,
installations and drawings. This varied body of work has been showcased in many
different locations across Europe and the United States, earning him a number
of nominations and awards.
Learning
2003-2007
ARTEZ Institute of the Arts, Arnhem, the Netherlands
2006
Internship Erwin Olaf Springveld
2009-2010
Art Teacher, Photography department,
Willem
de Kooning Academy Rotterdam, the Netherlands
More
information can be found on the website www.levivanveluw.nl. This site presents
all the artist’s work in chronological order, with accompanying information.
