Berlin Art Week. 2017. Painting. Levan Lagidze. Curated by Lily Fürstenow

Wostok Magazine Review of Lewan Lagidze's exhibition at gh36

Levan Lagidze. Painting. Bach Excercises

at GH 36

Große Hamburgerstrasse 36. 10115 Berlin

exhibition duration 12-22.9. 2017

opening hours 11-16 daily

Text. Dr. Lily Fürstenow

Levan Lagidze's painting is about paintstaking exploration of colour. The slightest changes, chromatic variations, shades and tones are developed by means of systematic adding of colour layers one upon another till the final result is achieved. Acutally these works are not about the final but more about the infinity of colour, it's profound depths and the possibilites for exploring the slightest changes, movements of light upon the surface, reflections, the intensity of tones, unexpected combinations. Nothing is here definite or predetermined, the process of painting may lead to unpredictable outcomes, where the chemical composition of the pigment in combination with other colours and the canvas would always look slightly different than planned. These are therefore “excercises” because they invoke inevitable repetition, recourse, revision of the history of painting trying to explore its limits and set out new borders – initiating a discourse on the means of expression and a meticulous process of search through repetition on the way to perfection.

“Excercises” imply here the experiment of painting, a private laboratory for the rethinking the centuries-long tradition of painting throughout art history trying to figure out its method and essence for us today. “Exercise” as endless repetitive process accentuating the artistic gesture, the mark, the repetitive movement of application of colour on canvas step for step. Lagidze's creative process recurs to old masters questioning their use of colour, citing fragments from masterpieces like those of Rembrand's somber reds, Velasques, Italian masters inspired by the unfathomable depths of Bach's fugues.

Lagidze's works discuss the strict canons of composition in painting the same way as in music in order to elaborate the possibilites for artistic freedom within the established norms, in order to break them, to reflect upon the established formal means in the constant effort towards the new. Not the figurative aspects but the sumptousness of colour is analysed and magnified in his works to abstractions that expand towards vast spaces in an attempt to redefine the tradition of painting and set its new ever changing limits. “Neither will nor limit – just step by step I carefully define the space” as he himself puts it.

Meetings and discussions

Levan Lagidze Biography 1958 – born in Tbilisi, Georgia 1981 – graduated from the State Academy of Fine Arts in Tbilisi 1983-1987 – director of the Artists' House "creative fine art studio" in Tbilisi 1986-1989 – chairman of Georgia's Young Artists' Union 2011-present – owner of the “Lagidze Gallery” Tbilisi, Georgia Solo Exhibitions: 2012 – Modern Art Museum, Kuwait City; 2011 – Opening of the Lagidze Gallery (Levan Lagidze’s private gallery), Tbilisi, Georgia; 2010 – Exhibition Hall of Europe House, Tbilisi, Georgia; 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007 – Chardin Art Gallery, Tbilisi, Georgia; 2006, 2005, 2004, 1998, 1995 – TMS Art Gallery, Tbilisi, Georgia; 1994 – Central House of Artists, presented by Gertsev Gallery, Moscow, Russia; 1990 – Georgian Center of Culture “Mziuri”, Moscow, Russia; 1989 – House of Artists, Tbilisi, Georgia Group Exhibitions: 2009 – Oc-Eo Art – Contemporary and Modern Fine Art, London, UK; 2008 – The Alla Bulyanskaya Gallery, London, UK; 2004 – Silent Auction to benefit the American Friends of Georgia – Doyle, New York, USA; 1998 – ART SALON’98, Moscow, Russia; 1997 – “Going Back”, TMS Art Gallery, Tbilisi, Georgia; 1996 – Galerie Seidel am Domhof, Cologne, Germany; 1994 – “The Bigining”. CA Global AC, Vienna, Austria; 1994 – Georgian Art, Steiner Haus, Bonn, Germany; 1993 – Georgian Art, Riviera Gallery, London, UK; 1990 – Georgian School - Drouot Auction, Paris, France; 1986 – Retrospective of Georgian Art, Central House of Artists, Moscow, Russia. Collections The Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow, Russia; The Modern Art Museum, Moscow, Russia; The National Picture Gallery, Tbilisi, Georgia; The Batumi State Gallery, Batumi, Georgia; The Zimmerli Art Museum, Rutgers University, NJ, U.S.A; The Gertsev Gallery, Moscow, Russia; "TMS" Art Gallery, Tbilisi, Georgia and private collections in Georgia, Russia, France, Germany, USA, Canada, UK, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway, South Africa and Poland.

Preparations

All images courtesy of E-merging Artists

Impressum

Lily Fürstenow

Torstrasse 208. 10115
Berlin

Berlin

030 9789 38 97

0151 614 38 978