Minimalism and After
February 2002
New acquisitions
Douwe Jan Bakker
Greg Bogin
Andre Cadere
Martin Gerwers
Gerold Miller
John Nixon
Eckhard Schene
Jan van der Ploeg
b. 1959 in Amsterdam/NLWallpainting
2002; Emulsion paint, dimensions variable, about 6 x 4 mJan van der Ploeg has been using the "Grip" for his painting since 1997. This motif is a ready-made in the form of a horizontal, long rectangle with rounded corners, derived from the hand-holes in the cardboard boxes used for removals.
It is essential for the artist that this is an easily recognized everyday form that he can shift into the context of painting without making any changes. The Grip is the only starting-point, the module, that van der Ploeg varies for his murals according to the architectural conditions he finds.
The artist has developed a colour vocabulary of his own for his work, consisting of black, white and contrasting shades like pink, purple or orange. The combination of various areas of colour with precisely related dimensions creates a remarkably three-dimensional quality. The colours do not seem to be embedded on a plane surface, but develop a volume that does not change the way in which the surrounding space is perceived, but includes it. The wide range of possible variations that van der Ploeg finds seems inexhaustible. Each wall painting is different in the choice of colour, size, detail and in the combination of Grips. Depending on the context, they can seem ornamental, three-dimensional, flat, or even dynamic as a result of their longitudinal form.
The Grips link painting, sculpture, system and seriality. They fit in with the everyday world in their overall effect, and function as signs and ornaments, as well as producing a painterly illusion. The Grips are a design device that allows formal reduction, but also inexhaustible variations.
Shaped canvas
2002; Acrylic on canvas, 26 x 44 cm, signed and dated on the back
Guided tours on Wednesdays, 6 p.m., groups book by telephone