Dennis Rudolph’s (1979) artistic practice focuses on a vibrant metamorphosis of centuries of Western culture, as classical historical genres find new resonance via new media tools. Rudolph’s small-format Ipad paintings are the artist’s most recent examples of how he captivates the viewer through the unique fusion of traditional painting and digital techniques.
Rudolph not only works digitally—he thematizes the digital. His motifs often include subtle references to the constant presence of media in our daily lives: a smartphone casually resting on a balcony table, the cool bluish glow of a screen illuminating a face. The imagery is familiar: portraits of friends and loved ones, interior scenes, travel impressions—captured in moments anyone might find in their phone’s photo gallery.
Whether in Italy, Siberia, or Pakistan—Rudolph uses the tablet as a portable studio. He responds spontaneously to what inspires him on-site, giving immediate visual expression to his impressions. Without the need for easels, paints, or canvases, the iPad enables a radically mobile way of working—very much in the spirit of the Impressionists, but using the tools of the 21st century. Dwelling into a tablet and painting the place he wants to come back to in his mind when he’s no longer there. Already facilitating a planned escape to the place he currently experiences.
The iPad paintings fascinate through their immediacy of expression. Every digital brushstroke and line is clearly legible, conveying the gestural quality of the work. At the same time, the interplay of digital tools creates a distinctive aesthetic: a matte, pastel glow reminiscent of the soft luminosity of a backlit screen—offering a striking contrast to the vibrant color intensity of Rudolph’s oil paintings.