The catalogue for the group exhibition The Nature of Abstraction combines seven artistic
positions in abstract-gestural painting from the Rhineland. On display are artists who have
dedicated themselves to abstract painting. Their self-referential work fluctuates between the
poles of dissolution and development of form. Despite their formal precision the process of
creating the paintings can be seen in the marks left behind on the canvases. Thus an affinity
to Informalism Tachism or Abstract Expressionism from the post-war period becomes apparent.
However these references are not directly cited but rather updated and reflected through
contemporary strategies. We find ourselves in an era when individual expression of freedom is
threatened by powerful systems of authoritarian control and the digital availability of
individual data and profiles. The kind of painting that favors a subjective gesture and thus
mirrors humanistic values of individuality might be an answer.
