27 may 2020, Flor Linckens
Digital drawing book | Maximum Calm
The restrictions that have been imposed on us in recent months have demanded a lot from the art world, but have also shown its vitality and creativity. Galleries came up with original initiatives and andriesse~eyck gallery decided to release a special digital book of drawings. MAXIMUM CALM shows work by various artists: Dan Asher, Jakup Ferri, Hans Hoekstra, Tomoko Kawachi, Marijn van Kreij, Joost Krijnen, Rory Pilgrim, Daragh Reeves and Wieske Wester. The title of the exhibition is a reference to a music record by Rory Pilgrim, one of the participating artists. Although it may have been created as the soundtrack of a film about climate activists, the name ‘Maximum Crisis, Maximum Calm’ also feels extremely urgent in the short term. The lyrics of the music are included at the end of the digital book. “Even if time feels too fast we’ll take it slow”.
Although the idea for the exhibition arose before the lockdown in mid-March, the current situation undoubtedly makes us look differently at some of these works. The depicted drawings often refer to domestic aspects or seem to come straight out of a dream. Therefore they seem to refer to our current situation, both in implicit and explicit ways. Hans Hoekstra, for example, shows us a balcony and someone who works from home: already two iconic symbols from this time that seem to effectively symbolise our quarantine. Tokomo Kawachi drew children looking out of the window, people who seem to live in a shoebox with air holes, a mouse that managed to escape from a small cage, and a building that’s aggressively enclosed by fences. Joost Krijnen portrays the house as a living object, while Rory Pilgrim invites us to look into an abstracted house that seems to be flooded with water.
Hans Hoekstra, Tea On The Balcony, 2020, andriesse eyck galerie.
We also see people sharing emotions that will already remind some people of the world before our current 6 feet (1.5 m) society. Jakup Ferri and Daragh Reeves drew people who touch and kiss each other lovingly. Hoekstra's works seem to draw us into a deep sense of loneliness while Rory Pilgrim's drawing urges us to be patient - or not? Marijn van Kreij and Hans Hoekstra show us the artist's practice in their studio. The variety of works is remarkable and every time you digitally browse through the book, you’ll see something different. The digital book was edited by artist Marijn van Kreij, whose work is also included in the book.
Rory Pilgrim, Our Home, 2020, andriesse eyck galerie.
