Lambert Kriedemann: Journey to the Interior

From 4 to 27 May 2017, Cape Town can look forward to a unique artistic display when fulltime local artist Lambert Kriedemann showcases his recent works in a solo exhibition to be held at the Cape Gallery.

Castle Rock, late afternoon.

Lambert Kriedemann has held 17 solo exhibitions and participated in group exhibitions in Spain, England, Australia, USA, Netherlands and Colombia. He has pursued a career as a full-time artist since 1975. A self-taught traditionalist, he spent five years working almost exclusively with hand-made paints before adapting his technique for use with modern tube paints.

Tarentella

In 1995, Lambert won the prize for “Best work on show” in the “Pulse of Africa” exhibition – one of the fringe events at the first Johannesburg Biennale. In the same year one of his paintings was included in the “Art ‘95” “Top 70” exhibition in New York. As a result of his successful participation in a group show by South African artists in the Netherlands in 1998, Lambert was sponsored to hold a one-man show in The Hague in October 2002.

The exhibition was opened by the South African Ambassador to the Netherlands, Ms. P. Jana. Lambert’s work has found its way into private and corporate collections, including First National Bank and The Board of Executors. In 1996/7 he was commissioned by Sun International to paint a mural and several large oils which are prominently displayed in the Table Bay Hotel. He also painted two large oils and several smaller ones for Grand West Casino.

Touched By Light

Lambert says: “This exhibition is more about a journey than a destination.” “After working for nearly thirty years in an increasingly realistic style, in 1998 I began to play about with paint for its own sake. I started by applying paint in a random way, using unconventional tools. This was done at great speed, keeping my mind as blank as possible. A more deliberate phase followed, as I modified these random marks to bring out my subjective associations.

Cornucopia

I tried to suggest subject matter without defining it clearly. This allowed each viewer to participate in forming the image, so that everyone would see something unique. I wanted viewers to be as fascinated by their own unconscious projections as I am by mine. My earliest efforts were miniatures and were done in my spare time.

As the years passed, the work increased in size and complexity. It also took up more of my working time, so that my career as a realist began to take a back seat. Then for a while the paintings became much simpler and more truly abstract. Finally I began to wonder if I could carry what I had learned into a new form of representational painting. And so I did.” Now this exceptional artist invites you to share in his journey.