Fresh off the easel – a selection of Damien's latest works.
Working mostly in oils, Kurth creates incredibly detailed 'trompe l'oeil' works that feel like tricks of the eye. He paints everyday objects – a cut crystal glass, an old jar, a patterned tin – things we usually overlook as mundane.
By placing these objects centre stage, with no clues about where they are or why they're there, their familiarity starts to fade. and they gain an element of mystery and intrigue. Kurth’s commonplace objects possess the ‘seemliness of the unfamiliar’ or ‘Jamais vu’ a term used to describe the experience of being unfamiliar with something that is very familiar.
The artist uses a traditional ground gesso, building the painting’s surface slowly; each stroke of oil working with the other to create a harmonic whole. Delicately painted sheets of paper and masking tape subtly divide the picture plane, creating a sense of depth, while fluorescent pink post-it notes punctuate his compositions; drawing the viewer’s eye across the canvas, achieving an overall sense of balance and harmony.
Damien Kurth (b.1972 Stratford, Aotearoa New Zealand) is a contemporary painter based in the Waikato. He holds a Master of Fine Arts from Elam School of Fine Arts and a Bachelor of Arts from Otago Polytechnic. Kurth’s work is held in numerous collections in NZ Aotearoa and worldwide. He is the winner of the Otago Polytechnic Painting Award, the Derivan Painting Award, the Cleveland Art Awards (Highly Commended) and a finalist in the Adam Portraiture Award.
Sponsored by Gate Pa New World
This exhibition launch preview is Friday 5th June, 5.30pm – 7pm at The Incubator Creative Hub, The Historic Village, 17th Ave, Tauranga. Everyone is welcome. Licensed Bar available.
On display at The Incubator Gallery from 6th June to the 27th of June.