Page 25 - Genius

PHOTO OF THE ArTIST IN A CHAIr IN 2009 WITH PAINTINg ON EASEl TITlED "lINkS".
 LinKs (THE CHAIN IS A STrONg AS THE WEAkEST lINk), 2005 ACrylIC ON PANEl
20x27,5 IN. /50x70 CM.

rien VörgerS

“Ehret die Frauen! Sie flechten und weben Himmlische rosen ins irdische way of expression: his mosaic style, rien walked a few steps ahead of
leben …“ (Honour the women! They plait and weave heavenly roses in the vogue. As from that moment his illustrated observations, based on
this earthy life…) objective social criticism, have become exceptionally intriguing, sometimes
even ambiguous. See ‘shooting smokers’.
These lines from a poem of Friedrich von Schiller (1759-1805) cited in his
87th year by rien vörgers, remain in his heart since he was a little boy, by experimenting with all kinds of different sizes of coloured cardboard
growing up in the East of The Netherlands, near the german border, where pieces, he initiated a method of creating images, consisting of forms that
cultural ties are not bound to specific nationalistic sentiments. This artist appear transparent on the surface, are yet painted next to each other,
is definitely not a womanizer, but a sincere admirer of woman’s unbroken but look as if they overlap. In progressive photography images can indeed
strength, her bondage, her empathic mind and her unwavering conviction overlap each other, but that became in vogue at least a decennium later.
that righteousness should prevail. See ‘women in function’. No one has as yet clearly understood how rien came to the astounding
production of this kind of art. remarkable is his gift of finding harmonious
being a romantic, rien was at first true to painting in water colours: tones, exactly matching each other within the sometimes more than
portraits and landscapes. twenty colours of a painting. Every single one takes him hours to mix for
the use of just one painting. That’s how he makes every image a coherent
A teacher at the Art Academy in Enschede stated once that his water and expressive novel of its own.
colours exhaled the atmosphere of “magic realism”. but around 1980, when
a dramatically change in the art world occurred and when a re-orientation in His mosaic style of painting could be explained publicly by rien in 1993
contemporary art took place, rien had already for some years mused upon during an interview on the regional television sender, which might have
a new way of abstract expression. Since individuality in art had become shown other artists the way of a new manner of abstraction within realism.
world-wide accepted several decennia earlier as the norm something had
to be done, in his opinion. His opinion was that losing the possibility of Due to physical disablements rien vörgers now lives like a hermit.
showing thoughts and circumstances in a tangible way, understandable However, he got to know how society works throughout his long life full
for the consumer of modern art, never minding the preferences of the of activities within the world of glass building. He acquired also wisdom
mighty and the rich, had been a fashion that had served its purpose and by recommending architects and construction companies on how to use
should now be avoided. colours on the outside of their buildings. His dear attachment to enforcing
mankind’s future in a positive sense, encouraging observers of his pictures
rien’s delicate nature does not permit him to paint with rough strokes: to think about the background of what is shown in the foreground, remains
his subjects are standing out precisely and in detailed compositions, his main source of energy. The tree with branches designed like barriers: a
expressing his private feelings and views that are inspired on what tree offers shelter, but everybody sees him/herself once in a while standing
society in all its various manifestations offers him. Here he is in tune with before a barrier. See ‘barrier’.
benedictus xvI’s desire, that art should play the role of a binding part in
society. rien’s paintings treat a fundamental aspect in society, there where Although his painstaking way of painting requires much time, in the last
human coherence is at stake. In 1978, when he created a completely new thirty years, rien’s mosaic styled paintings mount to more than 300.

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