Matthias van Arkel, "Container"
Signed MvA. Silicone rubber, 25 x 25 x 25 cm.
Surface dirt. Minor wear at the edges.
Tom Böttiger Collection, Stockholm.
Matthias van Arkel's expression is unique and unmistakable; for 20 years, he has combined painting and sculpture in his works executed in industrially vulcanized silicone rubber. van Arkel's creative process has evolved from a conceptual approach. In his three-dimensional works, meaning is achieved through density, sensuality, and energy. There is a performative dimension involved in the creative process, where the artist balances intuition against control through the specific technique he has developed. Sculptural forms move like enlarged brushstrokes, forming abstract landscapes. van Arkel challenges our perception of what defines a painting and invites us to see it from a new perspective. van Arkel is educated at Konstfack and the Royal Institute of Art in Stockholm and is currently active in Stockholm and New York. His works can be found, among other places, in the collections of the Moderna Museet, Stockholm, and the SOKO Art Collection in Finland. van Arkel has undertaken a variety of public commissions, including the monumental work "Micro/Macro World" in Jakobsberg's bus terminal