VOLTA VISITS | HENDRIK ZIMMER | Frankfurt, Germany
VOLTA Visits - We spend time in the studio with Hendrik Zimmer, represented by Galerie Heike Strelow, ahead of his return to VOLTA New York 2023. We find out more about his process and the work he’ll be showcasing.
Hendrik Zimmer in his studio, Foto: Peer Schorn
Hendrik Zimmer’s studio is located in Frankfurt’s East End. The former industrial area on the city’s east harbor has transformed into new developments whilst still retaining its place as the city’s creative hub. Frankfurt is Zimmer’s hometown and whilst the majority of his fellow students moved to Berlin after graduation, he prefers Frankfurt’s less hectic and overloaded atmosphere where he is able to fully focus on his creative practice.
Zimmer studied at Academy of Fine Arts Städelschule, continuing his studies to graduate as a Masters student of Tobias Rehberger.
“I started my studies as a sculptor. At the städelschool in Frankfurt every class was interdisciplinary. There were no borders, you could do painting in the film class and so on. Tobias Rehberger is a sculptor but first of all he is a conceptual artist.
For me, there was a strong attraction towards painting and alot of unsolved questions. I investigated the differences and the similarities - I painted on objects and hung sculptures to the wall. This is an ongoing process and right now I use objects to transfer colour to a canvas.”
With this foundation in sculpting, Hendrik quickly turned towards abstract painting by creating collages and décollages stating that his work “emerge as paintings through sculpture.” His love for all printed matter shines through his earlier paintings as he used found materials from billboards, prints off the street, collects books and newspapers, bringing the outside world into his studio.
While he previously used these printed works as material or as models for content, he now turns to the oldest method of reproducing images - the technique of woodblock printing. Like the artists of the 20th century European avant-garde, Zimmer takes up the technique of the great Japanese woodblock printmakers who have been making multi-coloured prints since the 10th century.
“The Japanese woodcut (1750) was mainly entertainment for the general public. Posters, advertising and book illustrations found thier way into my work. Taken apart ripped and splattered I used it as material for collages. Building this up layer by layer I saw it as a sculptural approach on painting again.”
In his latest series of work, Zimmer pushes the boundaries of the traditional woodcut technique and puts it into a new perspective. Enforced outlines, stylized surfaces, a tendency towards closed areas of colour and strict geometries become apparent as Zimmer consciously integrates these visual cues into his clear, powerful images.
Untitled (Stufen 1), 2022 - Colour wood block printing on canvas, framed 150 x 110cm Photo: Wolfgang Günzel, Courtesy: Galerie Heike Strelow
He has been experimenting with different colour densities, intensities and structures, continuing the play between two and three-dimensionality, surface and depth that was typical of his earlier work. Zimmer develops his visual language by bringing together forms and objects from different contexts. From this he develops his own pictorial worlds, which do not 'represent' anything in particular, but are something entirely of their own visual language. They arise from Zimmer's "fascination with the world and its people, its beauty and its abysses", suggesting familiar sights but allowing the viewer to fill the resulting realms with their own impressions and experiences.
Find out more:
Zimmer’s work is held in major collections in Europe, North and South America, including large-scale, site-specific pieces.
He is represented by Galerie Heike Strelow, Frankfurt and will be part of the Gallery’s presentation at VOLTA New York, May 17 - 21 2023.
The quotes used above are courtesy of Victoria Andersson, Assistant Director of Berg Gallery.
Studio view, photo: Hendrick Zimmer
HENDRIK ZIMMER
Born 1973 in Frankfurt, Germany
Lives and works in Frankfurt
Education
2013 University teaching position (workshop collage) at Methesius Art Academy Kiel, Germany
2008 Master student of Tobias Rehberger, Städelschule, Frankfurt/Main, Germany
2003–08 Academy of Fine Arts Städelschule, Class of Tobias Rehberger, Frankfurt/Main, Germany
2002–03 National Academy of Fine Arts Karlsruhe, Germany
Residency and Scholarships
2021 Project scholarship from the Culture Foundation Hesse
2020 Working grant from the Culture Foundation Hesse
2011–12 The Culture Foundation of the federal State Hesse, Travel Grant, Papua New Guinea
2010–11 Scholarship from the Lions Club in Frankfurt (Künstlerhilfe e.V.)
Recent Exhibitions (selection)
2023 Painting Through Sculpture, Gallery Berg, Stockholm (Solo)
2022 Hendrik Zimmer – Starsky Brines in Dialogue , Gallery Cerquone, Madrid
(Two person show)
2022 Hendrik Zimmer – Starsky Brines in Dialogue ,Galerie Heike Strelow, Frankfurt
(Two person show)
2022 Bulls vs Bears, Gallery Cerquone, Caracas, Venezuela
2021 Walk the line, Galerie Heike Strelow, Frankfurt
2020 Morgen und Felder (Solo), Galerie Heike Strelow, Frankfurt
2019 Paper Selections, Galerie Heike Strelow, Frankfurt
2018 Pass mit dem Knie auf mit dem Tisch (Solo), Galerie Heike Strelow, Frankfurt
2017 Expressive Gestures, Galerie Heike Strelow, Frankfurt
2017 Street Semiotics, Gallery Charlie Smith, London
2017 Supermarket, Independent Art Fair, Stockholm
2017 Supermarket II, Kallio Kunsthalle, Helsinki