biography

Transcription

biography
KISSMER
Willi Kissmer was born in 1951 in Duisburg, Germany where he remains
today as well as the South of France.
Kissmer is known for technically exquisite etchings, oil and acrylic
paintings that mostly depict nudes or half nudes, which are oftentimes
draped in swaths of lush fabric. The details are accentuated in ultra-realistic texture using a combination of mezzotint, dry point and aquatint,
which highlight the juxtaposition between flesh and cloth.
Finding inspiration in his immediate surroundings, Kissmer’s model is
usually his wife. Presented as a subject of eroticism and detailed study,
he articulates our communal relationship with objects of desire.
After his studies at the renowned Folkwang art school, Kissmer made a
name for himself both as a musician and an artist. After numerous educational trips to Russia, Egypt, South America, Greece, Italy and Turkey
he taught printmaking at the University of Duisburg. He has had numerous exhibitions in the United States and England.
In his work, the artist prefers the torso. He consciously omits the representation of the head, abstains from individual facial features, and
the rendition of hands, the gestures of which could impair the composition and thus the statement. The omission of individuality as well as
psyche, the concentration on universal anonymity, and the emphasis
on the body indicate Kissmer’s actual concern to deliver symbols of elementary human life, which find beautiful expression in the blooming
female body.
More information and available works:
www.hohmannfineart.com
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BIOGRAPHY
WILLI KISSMER
Willi Kissmer’s etchings, which mostly depict nudes or half nudes, are
oftentimes draped in swaths of lush fabric. The details of which are
accentuated in ultra-realistic texture, crease and form brought forth through
his signature techniques that combine mezzotint, dry point and aquatint.
Beside these graphic prints, Kissmer produces technically exquisite
paintings in oil or acrylic. Instead of working on a structured canvas, he paints
on paper-mounted plywood. Its smooth surface permits the reproduction
of the finest details highlighting the juxtaposition between flesh and cloth.
As seen in both “Standing With Pink Top” and “Sitting Woman
With Pink Top”, this contrast presents the beautiful body of a
woman against the ensuing folds and wrinkles created in her top
– a moment of friction as electric as the visage of the human form.
Finding inspiration in his immediate surroundings, his model is
usually his wife. Presented as a subject of eroticism and detailed
study, he articulates our communal relationship with objects of
desire.In his pictures, the artist prefers the torso. He consciously
omits the representation of the head, abstains from individual facial
features, and often also from the rendition of hands, the gestures
of which could impair the composition and thus the statement.
The omission of individuality as well as psyche, the concentration on
universal anonymity, and the emphasis on the body indicate Kissmer’s
actual concern, i.e. to deliver symbols of elementary human life, which
find their most beautiful expression in the blooming female body.
The artist employs combinations of etching, aquatint, drypoint and
mezzotint techniques on his copperplates. A range of warm tones
and the talent to bring an electrifying edge to his subject, in part, links
Kissmer’s art to a long tradition of realism in northern European painting.
Willi Kissmer’s expressive and exaggerated interpretation of detail
is a trait that permeates the body of his art that has been described
as sensual, provocative, technical and mysterious.
His works
are not conventionally pretty but compelling – confrontational.
Willi Kissmer’s studio and residence is in an old industrial tower in
southwest Germany. Although his trips have taken him all over Europe,
Asia, and the United States, his subjects are always close at hand.
“Everything comes out of my personal living environment. That is a
result of my laziness. I look around enough to find something that is
worth representing.” Consequently, his wife became his ultimate model.
The foundation of Kissmer’s art is in his passion for the still life. These
elements can include combinations of the female figure, everyday
objects and residential architecture.
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Kissmer is most interested in relating the qualities of light and its effects
upon objects- especially the folds and creases of fabrics and drapery.
In his new book it says: ‘...[Willi Kissmer] is much more interested in the
partially clothed female than in the complete nude. The full nude for him
is not demanding enough. For Kissmer it is the combination of flesh and
fabric that form the core of his aesthetic...Within the fold of fabric the
force of gravity becomes visible: a force at once real and imaginative,
full of poetic possibility.’
Even though the nude female body has been subject for art for many
hundreds of years, Willi Kissmer has been able to find his very own
unique style that makes him so recognizable and has laid the foundation for his worldwide fame and success.
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
1989
Allen Augustine Gallery, Lake Tahoe, USA
Sterling Gallery, La Jolla, USA
1990
Amtsrichterhaus, Schwarzenbeck, Germany
1991
Interart Galerie Reich, Koeln, Germany,
Tercera Gallery, Los Gatos, USA
Galerie Malek, Bensheim, Germany
1992
Stadtwerke Duisburg, Germany
Galerie Aviva, Essen, Germany
Galerie Articles, Kevelaer, Germany
Reid Galleries, Carmel, USA
1993
MRL, Long Beach, USA
Johnson Art, San Luis Obispo, USA
Nevada Institue for Contemporary Art (NICA), Las Vegas, USA
1995
Gallery No. 3, Isselburg Anholt, Germany
Parkview Fine Paintings, Bristol, UK
Ritterhof Gallery, Salzgitter, Germany
Kunsthaus Ratingen, Germany
1996
Galerie Tabula, Tubingen, Germany
Turmgalerie Bonn, Germany
Kunsthandlung Moers, Germany
Galerie Articles, Kevelaer, Germany
1997
Parkview Fine Paintings, Bristol, UK
Ritterhof Gallery, Salzgitter, Germany
Galerie No. 3, Isselburg Anholt, Germany
John Bolxham Fine Art, London, UK
1998
Art Et Cetera, Staelen, Germany
Galerie Fritz Geyer, Plauen, Germany
Galerie Schoenhof, Jade, Germany
Ritterhof Gallery, Salzgitter, Germany
Galerie Aspectus, Neustadt a.d.w., Germany
1999
GalerieHermann, Neumarkt i.d.Opf, Germany
Parkview Fine Paintings, Bristol, UK
Galerie Helga Wicher, Wuppertal, Germany
Galerie No. 3, Bocholt, Germany
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1999
2000
2004
2005
2006
Galerie Aurika, Frankfurt, Germany
John Bolxham Fine Art, London, UK
Galerie No. 3, Essen, Germany
Galerie Conrad, Bonn, Germany
Kleine Weltlaterne, Berlin, Germany
Galerie Odermatt and Spatz, Schiffersstadt Germany
Turmgalerie, Bonn, Germany
Art Et Cetera, Staelen, Germany
Hart Gallery, Carmel, California
Hart Gallery, Palm Desert,California
Hart Gallery, Palm Desert, California
SELECTED COLLECTIONS
1988
Lehmbruck Museum, Duisburg, Germany
1989
Galerie 4, Arlesheim, Switzerland
1990
City Gallery, Portsmouth, Great Britain
Marietta/Cobb Museum, Marietta, USA
1991
Kontakte II”, Duisburg, Germany;
Moskau/Leningrad, USSR
“Erotic Art”, Galerie Tabula, Tuebingen
1992
International Graphics Trienale, Frechen,German
1993
Art Multiple, Dusseldorf, Germany
1994
Galerie Marijke Raalmakers, Grubbenvorst,Netherlands
Line Art, Gent, Belgium
Art Multiple, Dusseldorf, Germany
1995
Art Stockholm, Sweden
Art Expo, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Art Multiple, Dusseldorf, Germany
Art Expo, New York, USA
1996
Lehmbruck Museum, Duisberg Germany
Cubus Kunsthalle, Duisburg, Germany
Internationale Grafik Triennale, Frechen,Germany
Art Multiple, Dusseldorf, Germany
Art Expo, New York, USA
1997
Art Expo, New York, USA
Art Multiple, Dusseldorf, Germany
Saga, Paris, France
1998
Art Expo, New York, USA
Galerie Marijke Raalmakers, Grubenworst,Netherlands
PAN, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Kunsthaus Veith, Pirmasens, Germany
Art Multiple, Dusseldorf, Germany
Galerie No. 3, Essen, Germany
Art Expo, Los Angeles, California, USA
1999
Art Expo, New York, USA
Art Multiple, Dusseldorf, Germany
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PUBLIC & PRIVATE COLLECTIONS
Kaestner Gesellschaft, Germany
Aldegrever Gesellschaft, Germany
Helen Chrysler Green, New York, USA
Mark& Sandra Tratos, Las Vegas, USA
Kate Cuddy Gielen, London, Ontario, Canada
PRINTING TECHNIQUES
All my print graphics work since 1980 has used the etching technique.
Originally the name referred only to dry point etching. but today every
manual form of copper plate printing is referred to as an etching. Dry
point etching is the original, manual form of Intaglio, a technique by
which the image is engraved into the surface of a hard metal plate.
In the printing process these indentations are filled with ink, which is
transferred under high pressure onto paper that has been softened by
moistening with water. The material from which the plates are made is
usually 1-2mm thick polished copper, but zinc, steel, brass and plexiglass
are also used. In my work I use different etching techniques in combination,
described as follows. Line etching (etching, Eau-Forte) is the oldest of all
techniques. After the plate has been covered with a thin acid-proof layer,
the drawing is scraped with a needle so that the metal is exposed through
the lines. After covering the back, the plate is placed in an acid bath which
deepens the lines proportional to the etching time and acid strength.
-October 1999 Willi Kissmer
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