With the series Memory in Art I would like to establish collaboration with the future owner. The idea is to incorporate a personal object or memory into the artwork, an abstract painting as an immortalized memory.  In a way the canvas will hold a secret while at the same time the secret is to be looked at, this contrast creates an exciting tension.

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Due to the absence of colour these ‘blank canvases’ can showcase their messages without any distraction. The use of just white and texture makes it’s possible for light and shadow to interact with the artwork visibly, exposing different characteristics depending on the hour or the day. Sometimes being more graphical or to give it a softer appearance. This type of practice can be connected to the ZERO movement (initiated in the sixties and precursor of conceptual art), a style I’ve been visiting during my last years of my naturally evolved art practice.

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The first Memory in Art piece I’ve made cherishes a ‘lucky stone’ that was gifted by my then two-year old granddaughter. I’d be honoured to be able to expand this series of artworks with memories of others. For example referencing to their childhood: a small toy, rattle or of young adulthood: first love letters, jewellery, your first earned coins. A piece of texts that you know by heart or to maybe eternalize something precious of a deceased one. It’s possible to use the personal object directly or to enclose it in a small box to save it from damage. The last would cause that the object’s contours are less visible.

 

Wouter Janssen