'Using colour pigments, I wanted to make a statement about the importance of colour. Because of it, even reproductions of celebrated works in the history of art can change from one print run to another. If you place the pages side by side, you think that they're different works. All is relative in art.' – Vik Muniz
In his 'Pictures of Pigment' series Vik Muniz pays homage to the emblematic paintings of the great masters of impressionism and abstract expressionism, delving into the intricate interplay between visual perception and reality.
In his renowned 'photographic delusions,' Muniz meticulously layers brilliant powdered pigment onto his canvas, achieving a remarkable textural depth that is later captured in a two-dimensional photograph. While the final photographic image marks the culmination of Muniz's artistic process, it is the scrupulous construction process itself that truly reveals the essence of his approach.
'I work with a variety of 'non-artistic' materials to illustrate the effects of the process over the meaning of images. I want to get the viewers back in the game of looking at things and to re-insert filters that once were so very important for our process of understanding the world through symbols.' – Vik Muniz
Van Gogh's Olive Trees stands as a testament to artist's profound emotional connection with nature and his unique interpretation of the Provence landscape. Seeking to encapsulate the essence of the southern countryside, Van Gogh imbued his work with a spiritual significance attributed to nature. His vibrant palette, featuring an array of greens, blues, and yellows, adds to the evocative power of his paintings. Van Gogh himself considered his paintings of olive trees to number amongst the best he had made in the South of France.
Building Van Gogh's sensual shimmers of colour and his iconic pointillistic strokes, Muniz enhances the intensity of the work with a contrast of luminous pigments and a range of photometric shadows, immersing the viewer to the variety of shades of the renowned olive grove.
Press release courtesy Gary Tatintsian Gallery.