 |
| Untitled 2012 170 x 320cm |
 |
| "Englische Landschaft" (English Landscape) 2010 150 x 280cm |
 |
| "Patmos 2" 2008 160 x 250cm |
 |
| "Bei Geltendorf" 2011 125 x 190cm |
 |
| "Oktober" 2009 160 x 300cm |
Sven Kroner is German artist creating monumental dramatic landscapes.
There is clearly a link here to the german romantic tradition of
David Caspar Friedrich
and others. At the same time these are very modern images. After all,
crop circles are (presumably) a recent phenomenon. The crop circle
paintings and others represent a kind of pop-version of the romantic
vision. The peculiar German fascination with native Americans finds it's
way into his work as well, and there's Stonehenge, which is difficult
to see these days without conjuring new age associations. But he manages
to avoid cliche's by imbuing his work with much larger themes. In
almost every piece the world is portrayed as a vast and mysterious
place, in which the human presence seems tenuous at best, barely hanging
on to the rough skin of this planet. It's a vision that has a strong
contemporary appeal, also echoed in pop-culture via post-apocalyptic
fantasies and survivalist themes. Looking around us, it may be hard to
reconcile this vision with a world in which the human presence is
actually difficult to escape, in which the very climate is likely being
re-engineered by our massive and ubiquitous presence. And yet, it is a
vision deeply rooted in our collective memories. The history of our
species is a history of confronting and surviving a strange and
unpredictable world, of infiltrating every nook and cranny we could
find, in order to eke out a precarious living. Kroner's work reminds us
of this history, and that our ultimate success may still be short-lived.
The scale and force of nature remains far beyond our control, even our
full understanding. Wisdom dictates that we view it with a little more
awe, and ourselves with a bit more humility.
There's much more to see on his website:
www.svenkroner.de
It's in German. Click on "Arbeiten" to see his full portfolios.
No comments:
Post a Comment