Ruud de Kort

The focus of my work lies on energies and the tensions they can create.

We are surrounded by energies; our modern society exposes us every day to an overload of forces that have an political or economic charge. Sometimes it is not immediately clear how energies are charged, positive or negative but their force fields are our daily environment and shape our world. How does this influence us and what are the consequences on our surroundings?

The work has politically engaged roots and has a strong longing for neutrality and balance. This desire gives the work an emotional charge. From this emotion came a desire for technical purity and simplicity. I find this in an abstract minimalist way of working. No anecdote or ornament, but formal reduction that leaves you with the essence. Every colour is applied in many thin layers until the right contrast between gloss and matt finish is achieved. This technique transforms the drawing or painting into an object. This way of pure and clean painting and perceiving brings a deep concentration that enables you to go into an almost divine depth, where things become clear. Through this minimalist way of working I manoeuvre myself into the background to create space for the image and for the viewer, so an open autonomous image can arise. An image that will lead to reflection and that will question its surroundings.