Stan Van Steendam
Traces
23 September - 22 October 2022


Exploring, both the volume and the constitution of the painting, the works of Stan Van Steendam are immersing meditative ‘sculptural objects’ that are embodying the existence of time, encompassing past and present.

In the last years, and in order to reinforce that concept, the artist decided to deeply approach this particular subject: ‘the traces’. Those are fragments of moments, signs and movement. They are part of the artist and the collective memories and collective feelings. They are everywhere and they are the relishes of different temporalities. To share it with the spectator and to create that floating interplay between the three dimensional space (of the gallery or the exhibition space) and the artworks, the artist really thinks a lot about the shapes and the ‘layering’ of the different works and the way he could provide the audience with ‘entities’ that you can watch and can that can be seen from all the sides; front and edges being part of the same work like a sculpture. Working with both matt and glossy material, creating tension amongst the different works materiality with organic and geometric results bringing people to both natural and artificial destinations.

Within his ongoing practice, the artist tends to translate these traces into the shape or the aspect of ‘lines’, in addition of the actual ‘masses’, that are now appearing as some strong and steady graphic elements that are creating a coherent unity between the different works and establish a harmony and a connection amongst them. Those lines refer naturally to paths, roads and imaginary maps. It is also a direct reference to his personal life as he did and does experience multiple trips to Barreiro in Portugal and will have also the opportunity to discover new boundaries such as Marfa, Texas.

As immediate echoes to it, Stan Van Steendam is also reducing and refining his palette and colours range through something recalling for those warm breezes, desolates landscapes, dust and rust and that strange feeling of a liberating emptiness.

Over the next months and by means of his personal development, the artist will tend to keep on his travel through that sculptural atmosphere and will still accurately investigate the field of ‘frames” and ‘wood constructions’ to polish his notion of contemplative journey wherein he will invite the audience the embark as well.


By Vincent Vanden Bogaard