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PRESS RELEASE / november 2016 PETER HOLST HENCKEL Priming and Framing November 12 December 17, 2016 With the exhibition Priming and Framing Specta presents a body of new works by Peter Holst Henckel. In the juxtaposition of photography and a variety of materials which give a physical experience of structures, surfaces and preparation, Peter Holst Henckel s works are both textural and inviting and at the same time charged with underlying meanings. Priming and Framing is an ambiguous title: on one hand, the terms are common when talking about the artist s work - the artist prepares the canvas (priming) and frames (framing). But on the other hand, Priming and Framing are also terms which are used when the media and politicians try to control what we are talking about - defined as priming - and how we talk about it in the public sphere - framing. There is therefore an exchange between the personal and the surrounding reality. The Priming and Framing, the artist does when the artwork is prepared and performed, is represented in the works with a variety of materials that provide an immediate and physical experience of structures, surfaces and preparation: stretchers, wood, paint, aluminum. One can, so to speak, detect the artist s actions. On the surfaces photographic images are printed. The motives are focusing on a media-political landscape. Not so much a definite political statement, but rather a being in and a questioning of the (political) reality, we find ourselves in. One example is Positive Priming (2016), where pieces of wood each partially dipped in paint, are put together, becoming one whole surface, thus appearing to be in an initial phase of the making of the artwork. On this primed surface photographs are printed, sometimes in layers. With the photographic images printed on the partially painted wood Peter Holst Henckel achieves an interaction between the textures of the material and the photographic statement. To Peter Holst Henckel there is no contradiction between form and content, aesthetics and meaning; on the contrary, he uses the juxtaposition of formal and social dimensions of the work to create new meanings and new questions. Herein lies the perspective of the artwork as one of several keys to decode, present and question the world around us, and thus the relationship between aesthetic and political reality. Over the years, Peter Holst Henckel has worked in a variety of media, but often based on photography. With a continuous exploration of how to shift the position and statements of the photography, he manages to open the images to several different meanings and interpretations at the same time, rather than a classical conception of photography as raw documentation. Herein lies an invitation to the individual viewer to form his/her own reflections. Peter Holst Henckel (DK, 1966) has done countless exhibitions in Denmark and abroad and he is represented in a number of museums. Furthermore, over the course of the past years Peter Holst Henckel has worked in the cross field between art and architecture, and among his latest public commissions are a Psychiatric Center in Ballerup, Tornbjerg Gymnasium, Herstedvester Prison, Carlsberg Museum in Valby, the new Playhouse in Copenhagen, Ramboll Headquarters in Ørestad and KUA (Copenhagen University). Peter Holst Henckel is represented in numerous public and private collections in Denmark and abroad. We thank the Danish Art Workshops for support!
Priming and Framing, 2016 Installationview
Good Together, 2016 Acrylic paint on plywood with UV print 139 x 56 cm Devilishly Good, 2016 Acrylic paint on plywood with UV print 164,5x122cm
Priming Something, 2016 Acrylic paint on plywood with UV print 87,5 x 70 cm Primed Golden Retriever, 2016 Acrylic paint on plywood with UV print 54 x 43 cm
We Take Care, 2016 Acrylic paint on plywood with UV print 117,5 x 70 cm Primed and Ready, 2016 Acrylic paint on plywood with UV print 44 x 38 cm
Priming and Framing, 2016 Installationview
Like Priming, 2016 Acrylic paint on plywood with UV print 85 x 95 cm
Framing Priming and Framing, 2016 stamp on wooden frames 260 x 207 cm
I) 2) 3) 4) Framed Soapbox I-IV, 2016 UV-print on acrylic paint (unique) I) 125 X 100 cm 2) 87,5 X 70 cm 3) 50 X 40 cm 4) 87,5 X 70 cm
Primed Soapbox, 2016 Lambda photography 72 X 50 cm ed. 2 + 1ap
Priming and Framing, 2016 Installationview
Framing Denmark, 2016 half roadsign wth cobber plate
Framed Golden Retriever, 2016 Lambda photography mounted behind 6 mm glass 120 x 190 cm
Priming and Framing, 2016 Installationview
Framing Freedom of Speech, 2016 Painted branch, box, microphone stand
I) 2) 4) 5) 6) 3) Blueprint I-VI, 2016 UV print on offset print plates Ed. 2 + 1ap I) 103 x 73 cm 2) 103 x 143 cm 3) 103 x 73 cm 4) 103 x 143 cm 5) 103 x 73 cm 6) 103 x 73 cm
Priming and Framing, 2016 Installationview
Superbly Good, 2016 Acrylic paint on plywood with UV print 122 x 101 cm
Positive Priming, 2016 Acrylic paint on plywood with UV print 122 x 101 cm