Marten Kirbach (b. 1979) studied at the Hochschule für Bildende Kuenste in Dresden from 2000 to 2006 under Prof. Elke Hopfe and Prof. Ralf Kerbach. From 2006 to 2008, he was a master student of Prof. Ralf Kerbach. We have been following his painting with interest for several years now. We are delighted to have secured Marten Kirbach for this remarkable small-scale exhibition.
Marten Kirbach is known for an abstract visual language that is striking in its consistency, one in which the objectivity of line and plane takes precedence over painterly gesture. Through geometries and color spectra meticulously calibrated in each individual work, the picture format becomes a testing ground, a kind of laboratory, where a distinctly articulated form emerges according to chance or inspiration and in accordance with seemingly strict rules.
Through a series of steps involving the division of space, layering and separation, colour modulation, the gentle linear dispersion of tones, overlays and semi-transparent coverings, a concrete pictorial narrative takes shape, bathed in soft neon light.
At times, these small-format paintings resemble precise, finely cut gemstones, each a perfectly balanced masterpiece in its own right. The works are characterised, on the one hand, by their love of variation and mutability, and on the other, by a simultaneous absolute rigour of form. It is from this contrast that Marten Kirbach’s painting derives its unique appeal.
