My images result from lines. I study form development phenomena – stone formations, flowing water, plant forms. Additional inspiration comes from scientific sources (biology, neurology, astronomy). I draw but not in the direction of a realistic reproduction of the object. On the contrary, I am more interested in energetic potential, in processes and metamorphoses in zones of initial articulation. The forms appear but they could fade into the background again.
In technical terms, wax has become a significant component of my work. I mainly use Chinese rice paper for the work on paper, which becomes half transparent after being treated with beeswax and obtains a faintly shimmering surface. A second layer can shine through, but appears removed and adds a kind of second voice to the “front” drawing. This second layer comments, questions and dissolves in the background.
Most of the images on a solid subsurface (wood, carton) are initially applied to a pigment dyed wax layer, which forms a characteristic relief-like top layer because of the flow caused by heating and thus also remains visible in subsequent work (scratching, paint application, drawing).
The theoretical background of the work is supplied by varied concepts, one focus being on Asian aesthetic. An example here is Francois Jullien’s “The Big Picture Has no Form”. Jullien postulates a work, “that in no way solidifies and maintains different or simultaneous potential forms, protecting itself from the anecdotal and proving its similarity without being similar in order to envision the availability of the background”. The starting point for Jullien is the Chinese “logic of breathing”, a process comprising the movements of “taking” and “returning”. Given these circumstances, the image surface can also embody blank space or emptiness – an essential counter-image for the copiousness of appearances.
- Website
- www.ulrichwerner.de
- @ulrichwerner_art
