Exhibition presents important works from across Erwin Olaf's four-decade career
The First Art Newspaper on the Net    Established in 1996 Friday, November 22, 2024


Exhibition presents important works from across Erwin Olaf's four-decade career
Erwin Olaf, The Kitchen, from the series Hope, 2005 © Erwin Olaf, Courtesy of Hamiltons Gallery.



LONDON.- Hamiltons presents Erwin Olaf: Bigger Than Life, a celebration of Olaf’s life and photographic oeuvre. The exhibition presents important works from across the artist’s four-decade career, including works from series such as Chessmen, Im Wald, Palm Springs, Paradise and Grief, alongside a selection of self-portraits. It is a monumental celebration of the artist’s contribution to the visual arts, and of his long-term close friendship with Hamiltons Gallery.

Erwin Olaf passed away in 2023. In one of the artist’s last conversations with Shirley den Hartog, his right hand and studio manager, he said that he wished to be remembered as ‘bigger than life’. This show pays homage to this wish.

During his lifetime Olaf was internationally renowned as an artist whose diverse practice centred around society’s marginalized individuals including women, people of colour, and the LGBTQ+ community. In 2019, following the acquisition of 500 works by in the Rijksmuseum, Olaf became a Knight of the Order of the Lion of the Netherlands. On the occasion Taco Dibbits, the director of the Rijksmuseum, called Olaf “one of the most important photographers of the final quarter of the 20th century”. In Autumn 2025, the Stedelijk Museum will be unveiling a major retrospective of Olaf’s works, hailing him “a free-thinker, and a tireless advocate for equal rights and freedom of expression.”

The walls are adorned from almost floor to ceiling with Olaf’s works, spanning across years and photographic series. The magnitude of the show is a metaphor for the magnitude of Olaf’s legacy; an ode to Erwin Olaf as ‘bigger than life’.

Influenced by artists such as Robert Mapplethorpe and Helmut Newton, Olaf’s early works were marked by a distinct subverting of social norms, challenging of taboos, and exploration of sexuality in modern society. Olaf started his career while living in a squat in Amsterdam by documenting 1980’s nightlife, but soon explored his own series and subjects in both black-and- white and colour. As his career progressed, he began shooting surrealist tableaux style images, adopting the role of both director and photographer, opting for a cinematic style embedded with stillness which seeks to express the sitter’s genuine emotions and neuroses.

Olaf’s highly theatrical mise-en-scenes recall the early ’60s, underscored by a diluted colour palette. He seeks inspiration from this period of major social changes, the rise of feminism, a prospering middle-class, globalisation and the haunting influence of television in nouveau-riche

American households. Influenced also by his own travels and accompanying feelings of transience and anomie, Olaf’s models often gaze into the distance and evoke an uneasy, disconnected sense of mystery. Their cinematic nature reflects Olaf’s evolution as an artist, leaning towards more complex narratives.

The exhibition presents a wide-ranging spectrum of the many issues that Olaf addressed in his work. His series ‘Im Wald’ (2020), which translates to ‘In the Forest’, draws attention to several global issues, including the climate crisis, wanderlust, migration and the COVID19 pandemic; directly investigating nature’s impact on our lives. Works from his series ‘Skin Deep’ (2015) explore the theme of the nude body; Olaf strived to challenge the beholder to perceive more clearly our contemporary notions of skin and sensation, of beauty and the body, without prejudice. These images stand as his refutation of the overwhelming saturation of sex and desire inherent in our modern mass-market, mass-media society. Meanwhile, works from Berlin (2012), Shanghai (2017) and Palm Springs (2018) explore the changing developments and cultures of three different cities, guiding the viewer to reckon with contemporary challenges faced in the context of societal histories, be that the tension between rapid cultural expansion and deep-rooted traditions in Chinese communities, or LGBTQ+ rights, racial injustice and gender inequality in American society.

Erwin Olaf was driven by the power of storytelling and the emotion images can provoke. He overcame initial controversy through sheer mastery of the medium, solidifying himself as one of the most important visual artists to emerge from Holland. On his death, the Dutch royal family issued a statement mourning the nation’s loss of “a unique, exceptionally talented photographer and a great artist”. His legacy is a momentous body of work which challenged societal norms and continually asked the question first posed to him by his photography tutor: “What is normal?”

Erwin Olaf was born in Hilversum in the Netherlands in 1959. He was first recognised internationally in 1988 after winning the Young European Photographer of the Year Award for his series ‘Chessmen’.

Olaf’s bold approach to photography earned him commissions from Louis Vuitton, Vogue, and the Rijksmuseum amongst many others. In addition to many international awards over the course of his career, his work is held in many private and public collections internationally including, amongst others, the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, the Fonds National d’Art Contemporain in Paris, the Museum Ludwig in Cologne, the Pushkin Museum in Moscow or the Art Progressive Collection in the United States. Olaf has been subject of solo exhibitions at Kunsthalle München, Germany; the Suwon Museum of Art, Suwon, Korea; National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, Taichung City, Taiwan and Centro Cultural De La Villa, Madrid, Spain.

In March 2023 Majesty the King Willem-Alexander and Her Majesty Queen Máxima of The Netherlands presented Erwin Olaf with the Medal of Honor for Art and Science from the House Order of Orange at Noordeinde Palace in The Hague. Erwin Olaf passed away in 2023 in Leide, The Netherlands.










Today's News

November 14, 2024

Carlos Luna's "Entre Ósmosis y Fusión": A masterful blend of cultures

The Aga Khan emerald sets new world auction record 55 years after its original sale in Geneva

Heritage Auctions to offer rarely seen 'Son of Frankenstein' movie poster

Sotheby's joins forces with UAE galleries to launch new exhibition series

Exhibition at Escher in The Palace showcases Julie de Graag and her contribution to art

mumok opens the most comprehensive institutional solo presentation of Liliane Lijn thus far

Exhibition at Hauser & Wirth presents a group of works-landscapes, still lifes and portraits by Annie Leibovitz

Gagosian exhibits new works from the TURBINE series by Sterling Ruby in Hong Kong

rodolphe janssen opens the second solo show at the gallery of American artist Jason Saager

RISD Museum announces new exhibition 'The Art of French Wallpaper Design'

Hamburger Kunsthalle exhibits numerous new acquisitions

Exhibition presents important works from across Erwin Olaf's four-decade career

Post Scriptum. A museum forgotten by heart: the catalogue will be an editorial fashion feature

Exhibition offers visitors a captivating journey through time and history

Norway's National Museum announces its 2025 exhibition programme

Zinedine Zidane sells lot 1 of Watches for ELA charity auction at Christie's Geneva

Digital artwork by Ashley Zelinskie highlights influence of physics in early 20th-century abstract art

Bozar opens the first solo exhibition by Kuwaiti visual artist Monira Al Qadiri in Belgium

Maureen Paley now represents Merlin James

Patrick Mahomes' Chiefs jersey blitzes Heritage's Winter Sports Catalog Auction

Sale at Christie's marks the 50th anniversary of Tignanello wine

Transform Your Travel Shelter: 10x15 Canopy Tips You Need to Know

The Most Iconic Hoodies - Wearable Masterpieces from World-Renowned Painters

ICC Champions Trophy 2025: Venues, Dates, Teams and Other International Cricket Updates

A Complete Guide to Cat Care: Litter, Food, and Toys

Exploring Situs Slot Gacor Machine Games with the Best Graphics

Avoid Overspending for the Best Windshield Replacement Experience

Can Road Splitting Lead to Accidents? Let's Find Out

Carefully Approach Rug Patterns to Make the Most of Them

From Tinnitus to Hearing Loss: How Can an Ear Doctor at Your Local ENT Clinic Help

Hiatal Hernia Treatment Options: From Lifestyle Changes to Surgical Solutions

Setting Up Your Office? Here's a List of Furniture Pieces That Are a Must for Your Workspace!

Why Cork Board Should Be Your Go-To Display Board in Your Office?

The Ultimate Destination for Cartoons: Products, Licensing, and Original Art




Museums, Exhibits, Artists, Milestones, Digital Art, Architecture, Photography,
Photographers, Special Photos, Special Reports, Featured Stories, Auctions, Art Fairs,
Anecdotes, Art Quiz, Education, Mythology, 3D Images, Last Week, .

 



Founder:
Ignacio Villarreal
(1941 - 2019)
Editor & Publisher: Jose Villarreal
Art Director: Juan José Sepúlveda Ramírez
Writer: Ofelia Zurbia Betancourt

Royalville Communications, Inc
produces:

ignaciovillarreal.org juncodelavega.com facundocabral-elfinal.org
Founder's Site. Hommage
to a Mexican poet.
Hommage
       

The First Art Newspaper on the Net. The Best Versions Of Ave Maria Song Junco de la Vega Site Ignacio Villarreal Site
Tell a Friend
Dear User, please complete the form below in order to recommend the Artdaily newsletter to someone you know.
Please complete all fields marked *.
Sending Mail
Sending Successful