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20/6/2003

Ib Geertsen

Nikolaj Kunsthal - Copenhagen Contemporary Art Center, Copenhagen

Nikolaj, Copenhagen Contemporary Art Center, presents a retrospective exhibition of the works of Danish visual artist Ib Geertsen (born 1919). Ever since his debut, Geertsen s colourful universe has occupied an important position on the Danish art scene and within concrete art in Scandinavia. This exhibition features more than 100 of his works, and it is the first major presentation of his impressive oeuvre in Copenhagen for more than 20 years.

The exhibition has come into being in co-operation with the artist. Many of the suggestions we have received to present this exhibition have come from younger artists who are interested in extending their knowledge of Geertsen s work. The aim of this exhibition is thus partly to pay homage to a significant artist within Danish art history, and partly to facilitate the dialogue between two different generations of artists. The exhibition ranges over Geertsen s early naturalistic and expressive paintings, his masterly mobiles, and brand new works. Even though the exhibition thus serves as a survey of his entire artistic career, it also highlights various selected foci in order to present in some depth a particular period or theme. One such focus is Geertsen s first noteworthy appearance on the Danish art scene at the1947 exhibition of the seminal group of artists, Linien II ( Line II ).

His abstract expressionist works with their technical experiments can be seen as forerunners of the drip paintings of the1960 s. The next focus of the exhibition is the early constructivist phase from1948 to the mid- 50 s, during which the fundamental aesthetic experiences were made which inform Geertsen s mature production. From the mid-50 s on it no longer makes sense to divide his works according to chronological phases: his foci are now increasingly thematic. One example is the development of the so-called drop shape (or circle-square) and the way it is used in a variety of artistic techniques. As a synthesis of his preoccupation with simple and basic geometrical forms and his interest in soft and organic forms, Geertsen s drop shape has emerged as one of the most frequently recurring figures in his works. Another theme is Geertsen s mobiles, their syntax and variation; his opening of the work of art towards the social room constitutes yet another central theme. Parallel to the ongoing development of his paintings and sculptures, Geertsen has left a mark through his works of large-scale decoration in a number of major public spaces and buildings.

His coloured environments at hospitals, libraries and schools are wellknown by most Danes and demonstrate the artist s vision of the social room in a very concrete manner. Similarly, his designs for various articles for everyday use such as vases, wallpaper, jewelry, bicycles and furniture add another dimension to the scope of Geertsen s artistic endeavours. Geertsen s vision of the social room, his tight, constructivist form, his relationship with motion and weightlessness, combined with his notion of the social dimension of the work of art all emphasise his importance to the contemporary Danish art scene. Along with art historian Mette Hjsgaard we have invited three young visual artists to contribute to the catalogue with their reflections on Ib Geertsen s work: Kerstin Bergendal, Nils Erik Gjerdevik and Torgny Wilcke.


Catalogue editors: Elisabeth Delin Hansen and Kirsten Dybbl.
The exhibition is supported by The New Carlsberg Foundation and The Danish Contemporary Art Foundation.

Image: Ib Geertsen, Movement IV, 1984, oil on canvas, 130 x 130

Open daily 12- 17 pm

Adults kr. 20 Under 15 free admission

Wedensdays free admission

Nikolaj
Copenhagen Contemporary Art Center
Nikolaj Plads 10
DK - 1067 Copenhagen
P: +45 33931626
F: +45 33321574

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