Thomas Westphal
Diachronical 1
5.1.2019 – 27.1.2019
Diachronical 1 presents a series of works to Huuto´s gallery space that I consider more as a project than a display of finished artworks. Like the exhibition title hints, I am referring to work that developed and evolved through time. The works are a sort of testing field for transitory/ participatory artworks and experiments.
A lot of the imagery deals with transitory spaces and the non-spaces in between the states of before and after. I call the works envelope sculptures, because the space is temporarily squeezed in-between before and after, where vanishing things or qualities have to go away for other qualities to appear. I give a good stir to the circle of taken down, demolition, building new and taking care of. I choose freely between the materials, may they be physical or digital, to study the forces that are affecting each other. Some invited people join in the process of transforming as well.
I find myself reacting to the exhilarating change in technology as well as in many economic models. The speed in which changes are happening leads to ideas and spaces that outgrow their meaning and purpose even while being created. The question, could the quality of an artwork or an exhibition benefit from a more open-ended approach, is tried out in Diachronical project.
The follow up, Diachronical 2, will be hosted by Muu Gallery (23.2-31.3.2019), The exhibition will be a continuation of ideas and insights gathered from the event in Huuto. This artistic double tapping lets me reflect on the different stages of production and focus on the process of an idea.
Thomas Westphal (b.1972 in Bochum, Germany) earned his Bachelor of Arts from aki, Akademie voor beeldende Kunst in Enschede and his Master’s degree at the Finnish Academy of Fine Arts in 2014. He lives and works since 2001 in Helsinki. He has exhibited in Germany, Greece, China, Russia, Netherlands and the United States. His last solo exhibition was “Iconics & Beats” at Gallery Sculptor in Helsinki (2015). His works are in collections of Museum of contemporary art, Kiasma, Museum of modern art, EMMA and the art collection of the Finnish National Gallery. He is a member of Huuto, Muu and the Finnish Sculptors Association and active within “Videokaffe” International artist collective.
Thomas Westphal
westphal.tom(at)gmail.com
040-816 5560
