RANDOM SHAPES
1
2
3
4
RANDOM SHAPES The Seaform Series
5
Seaforms 353 20 x 11.75 x 4.75”
6
Sandra Ainsley Gallery Celebrates artist Michael Behrens’ innovation, imaginative and bold creative spirit. His fascination with nature animates objects into microcosms of spectacular colors with illuminated layers and intricate details. The Seaforms body of work is a mesmerizing representation of an aquatic journey through a magnified perspective. The details are captivating as Behrens’ dives into the delicacy and activeness of natural structures. Over the years, we have been privileged to witness Behrens’ growth as an artist and his development into a world recognized sculptor. Sandra Ainsley Gallery is the leading contemporary glass art gallery in Canada. In business since 1984, its founder and namesake Sandra Ainsley exhibits numerous outstanding regional and international artists representing an extensive diversity of artistic approaches and techniques. The gallery is committed to the highest possible quality and to help building private and public collections. 7
M
y vision is to create objects in which you can see and feel the energy of nature. 8
9
About the artist Michael Behrens was born in Düsseldorf, Germany in 1973. He received a BFA from the Maastricht Academy of Fine Arts in the Netherlands in 2003. During his studies, Behrens had a proclivity for photography and abstract painting, but sculpture emerged as his true passion. With natural artistic talents and excellent technical skills, Behrens began a career as an independent artist early on. In 2006, he founded his studio in Düsseldorf, where he still works and lives. After his first solo show in Paris, France in 2008, the Ernsting Foundation invited him to exhibit with his former professor from art school, Peter Bremers. His work received immediate international attention due to Behrens’ use of strong color combinations, dynamic structures and shapes. His body of work consists of four different series: Underwater World, Landscapes, Seaforms and Phoenix. For over 15 years, Behrens’ sculptures are regularly shown at international art fairs and in galleries. His art work is actively acquired in private and public collections around the globe. “My vision was and is to create objects in which you can see and feel the energy of nature” Michael Behrens.
10
11
Seaforms 338 14.5 x 13.5 x 4.5”
12
Seaforrms 328 43 x 14.25 x 6”
13
Seaforms 356 21.25 x 15.5 x 5”
14
Seaforms “I’ve always enjoyed nature, the sea and the underwater world. This inspired the Seaform series,” Behrens says, “We come from nature and we will go to nature again. I want to stay aware of this moving cycle.” The Seaform works appear almost natural, grown in the wild and then ossified, frozen in time. The diverse color range and interior movement vary as if created organically by the environment. The natural and random appearance of the work begins with the exterior form and the fine details of the subareas and edges. There is an interplay with matte and polished surfaces. Then the viewer is drawn into the dynamic interior world with cell-like structures. The result is a mesmerizing experience.
15
T
ransparent and satin surfaces alternate, thereby creating a dynamic harmony with the inside and outside worlds.
16
17
Seaforms 230 15.75 x 11 x 4.5”
18
Seaforms 273 47.5 x 17.75 x 8”
19
Seaforms 289 36.25 x 14 x 6”
20
Seaforms 289 36.25 x 14 x 6”
21
About the work Michael Behrens plays with the idea of movement and balance in massive solid glass objects. The series Underwater World and Seaforms embody decades of personal sensory experiences above and below water. Deliberately random, strong shapes are formed as an outline as organic inner structures are created. The transparent and satin surfaces alternate, thereby creating a dynamic harmony with the inside and outside worlds. Technical exploration of structure is concentrated in the Landscapes series. Form is predefined by nature, so that structure is brought to the forefront. Within the Phoenix series, Behrens focuses on the abstract formal language in his sculptural work. The observer’s eye is drawn to the outlines and surfaces as every object is opaque. Over the years, Behrens has developed an exclusive and notable style and has become one of the most recognized German sculptors in his field. 22
Seaforms 224 18 x 12.5 x 5”
23
Seaforms 348 17.5 x 20.5 x 5.5”
24
The Studio A foundational stone to Behrens’ career was finding the right studio with both a positive energy and an environment to handle specialized technical equipment. At a young age, Behrens was able to acquire the highly technical skills, enabling him to run a studio independently and smoothly. He consistently pushed the limits of the material and ushered in a new era of kiln casted objects. Today, the design and concept of all main works are done in his studio in Düsseldorf which requires hours of preparing, model and mould making and creation. After working on the glass with different techniques, the studio melts the object and after a long annealing period, releases the mould from the sculpture. With a team of well-trained assistants, the studio is able to create sculptures of a specific scale. The final touch is given by the best skilled grinders from the Czech Republic. The whole process to create this type of sculpture is time consuming and demanding. Any deviations or impatience in the production process can cause unfortunate outcomes.
25
26
T
he natural and random appearance of the work begins with the exterior form and the fine details of the subareas and edges.
27
Seaforms 326 29.5 x 14.25 x 5”
28
Seaforms 294 18.5 x 11.75 x 5”
29
30
D
eliberately random shapes form an outline as organic inner structures are created.
31
Michael Behrens
1973 Düsseldorf, Germany Behrens studied at the Maastricht Academy of Fine Arts in The Netherlands, where he received a BFA in 2003. His work has been part of numerous solo and group exhibitions in Europe, United States and Canada. He lives and works in Düsseldorf, Germany. www.michael-behrens.com 32
Seaforms 341 20.75 x 9.25 x 5”
33
Seaforms 218 14.5 x 18 x 4.5”
34
35
Selected Solo Exhibitions Sandra Ainsley Gallery (Toronto, Canada), Achilles Foundation (Hamburg, Germany), Continuum Gallery (Königswinter, Germany), Sikabonyi Gallery (Vienna, Austria), Habatat Galleries (Royal Oak, Michigan, USA), Etienne Gallery (Oisterwijk, The Netherlands), De Glorie Gallery (Oosterbeek, The Netherlands), Van Loon & Simons (Vught, The Netherlands), Ernsting Foundation (Coesfeld, Germany), Hélène Porée Gallery (Paris, France)
Selected Group Exhibitions Glass Museum Frauenau (Frauenau, Germany), National Glass Museum Leerdam (Leerdam, The Netherlands), Homo Faber, Michelangelo Foundation (Venice, Italy), Fort Wayne Museum of Art (Fort Wayne, Indiana, USA), Frederik Meijer Sculpture Park (Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA), Ernsting Foundation (Coesfeld, Germany), Museum Kunstpalast (Düsseldorf, Germany), LWL - Museum, Glashütte Gernheim (Gernheim, Germany), MaMa Salvadore Gallery (Venice, Italy), Sandra Ainsley Gallery (Toronto, Canada), Plateaux Gallery (London, Great Britain), Schiepers Gallery (Hasselt, Belgium)
36
Seaforms 56 32.5 x 31.5 x 7”
37
38
B
ehrens had a proclivity for photography and abstract painting, but sculpture emerged as his true passion.
39
Annually Art Fair Participations Intersect-SOFA Chicago (Chicago, Illinois, USA), Art Palm Beach (Palm Beach, Florida, USA), Art Vienna (Vienna Austria), Art & Antique Hofburg (Vienna, Austria), PAN Amsterdam (Amsterdam, The Netherlands), Art Breda (Breda, The Netherlands)
Selected Collections Achilles Foundation (Hamburg, Germany), Imagine Museum (St. Petersburg, Florida, USA), Seven Bridges Foundation (Greenwich, Connecticut, USA), MusVerre (Sars-Poteries, France), Kunstpalast (Düsseldorf, Germany), Ernsting Foundation (Coesfeld, Germany), Novotný Museum (Nový Bor, Czech Republic), Glass Museum Immenhausen (Immenhausen, Germany), Glass Museum Lauscha (Lauscha, Germany), further private collections in Europe, Asia and North America
Galleries Sandra Ainsley Gallery (Toronto, Canada), Continuum Gallery (Königswinter, Germany), Habatat Galleries (Royal Oak, Michigan, USA), Schantz Galleries (Stockbridge, Massachusetts, USA), Etienne Gallery (Oisterwijk, The Netherlands), Sikabonyi Gallery (Vienna, Austria), Stölting Gallery (Hamburg, Germany)
40
Seaforms 282 22.75 x 14.25 x 5”
41
Seaforms 353 20 x 11.75 x 4.75” page 6
Seaforms 338 14.5 x 13.5 x 4.5” page 12
Seaforrms 328 43 x 14.25 x 6” page 13
Seaforms 356 21.25 x 15.5 x 5” page 14
Seaforms 230 15.75 x 11 x 4.5” page 19
Seaforms 273 47.5 x 17.75 x 8” page 19
Seaforms 289 36.25 x 14 x 6” page 21
Seaforms 224 18 x 12.5 x 5” page 23
Seaforms 348 17.5 x 20.5 x 5.5” page 24
42
Seaforms 326 29.5 x 14.25 x 5” page 28
Seaforms 294 18.50 x 11.75 x 5” page 29
Seaforms 341 20.75 x 9.25 x 5” page 33
Seaforms 218 14.5 x 18 x 4.5” page 34
Seaforms 56 32.5 x 31.5 x 7” page 37
Seaforms 282 22.75 x 14.25 x 5” page 41
Layout: Jeannine Berenbroek - Photography: Norbert Heyl - Text: Dr. Susann Just
43
44
45
46