Alexander Jowett and Arno Kortschot: Line and Space

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Copyright © 2019 Elan Fine Art Limited, All rights reserved.

Left Image: Alexander Jowett, "Soleil a Minuit," 2019, acrylic on canvas, 36" x 36"

Right Image: Arno Kortschot, "Together," 2016, zinc, acrylic and panel, 26" x 26" x 20"

Elan Fine Art is pleased to present a joint exhibition of the works by Alexander Jowett and Arno Kortschot. Line and Space.

Opening reception: Saturday, April 27th, 1 – 5 PM

In this exhibition, the works of Alexander Jowett and Arno Kortschot examine our needs and desires to look introspectively, by exploring how and why we look outwards to the universe and nature, with our relentless search on the subjective approach to phenomenon and concepts we have no ability to understand or explain.

Alexander Jowett, now a Toronto based artist spent a decade as a travel journalist. Jowett’s desire of recalling a memory, where he recreates a silence, a moment of ecstasy, and a space, or simply a lack thereof, is often done by articulating repeating lines that increase in proximity towards the centre of a working surface, which denotes the particular moment when the sky meets the sea, the sea to land, land to sky. He references some of his works to Baptism of Solitude (Le Baptême de la Solitude), writing by American expatriate writer Paul Bowles of his reflection of a dreamlike, transcendental experience of visiting the Sahara Desert. Through this labour-intensive arduous process, Jowett captures the essence of the physical world, yet also the dysphoria of magic lost through our experience of this deceptively pure, yet delicately complex network that encompasses us.

In Arno Kortschot’s works, he positions himself as a conduit between space and experience, for him, his works are “purely a spatial concept” which provides his viewers a “visceral, physical experience”. Kortschot chose zinc as the medium of his expression to reflect the timeless and imperfect qualities of nature. Bright, ravishing colours are encapsulated in hard-edged zinc panels, creating dynamic geometric minimalist forms, which so often refer to the art and architectural forms of the Netherlands, his homeland. His minimalist works seek to inspire the viewers to re-position themselves against nature and breakthrough conventional and traditional ways of observation.

To these artists, there is an endless nature to line and to space. When voids and lines exist in a continuous perpetual manner, it bends and folds, creating planes and depth, thus the space is created to serve an emotive purpose. Every detailed treatment of the surface becomes a delicate, soft, sensual experience created between the artist’s hand and the viewer, and a moment palpably and tenderly trapped within the material.

Alexander Jowett, Toronto based artist, son of Henry Roger Jowett, the visual arts director at Sheridan College in Oakville, ON, graduated as a philosophy major from Dalhousie University. His works have been featured in Affordable Art Fair, New York, Love Art Toronto, Art Toronto, Papier Art Fair, and Contact Festival. His most recent solo exhibitions ‘Reflections’ and ‘Le Bapteme de la Solitude’ were hosted by Alison Milne Gallery in Toronto.

Arno Kortschot, born in The Netherlands, received his BFA from ArtEz, former School of the Arts Constantijn Huygens, is now a Vancouver based artist. His works are regularly exhibited in US, Canada and the Netherlands, including the Singer Laren Museum. His works have been featured in Context New York, Context Miami, Dallas Art Fair, Palm Springs Art Fair, Art Toronto. His works have been published in various magazines, including ‘Collect’ and ‘Western Living’. Kortschot is often commissioned for both public and private collections, his works are included in the Sanders Collection, Haarlem, and the Province Zwolle, The Netherlands.