03 Aug Andrej Zwetzig
Andrej Zwetzig
ART EXHIBITION
Schwarzzeichnerei
Like deep-sea researchers, we behold the cosmos of Andrej Zwetzig with its mystique amidst the darkness.
The choice of the color black is not random; it serves as a central and unifying element. The paper and format symbolically become the world, perhaps even the universe. Black arranges the surface, opens and defines boundaries, allowing us to recognize objects, providing us with the guiding system as we navigate through these worlds. We gaze, and our minds imagine, giving rise to stories. Our perception remains individually tied to our memories and experiences.
Upon viewing the artworks, a certain melancholy, and at times, darkness, mystery, perhaps even threat and fear, resonate. Certainly, black intensifies this impression.
We encounter fairytale-like, mystical figures, animals, and plants. They remind us of our childhood, tales, poems, or encounters, evoking emotions, offering thrills and minor anxieties – entertaining us during contemplation. This is precisely the artist’s source of inspiration, playing with the sweet terror, melancholy, riddles, and the created naturalism.
Once again, the color black becomes a connection and multiplier. Clear delineations of black and white – light opposing darkness. What surface is being created? The positive or the negative space – or both simultaneously and equally? We find tonal gradations within the areas, guiding us, appealing to our visual memory and experiences. The weight of the surfaces, at the same time, the mastery of the finest dots and patterns. Spaces are created, volumes shaped, beings brought forth, presenting the sensational.
The areas of tension lie not only in the narrative but also in the crackling between light and darkness. Structures and tonal values are explored. Serendipity is welcome, allowed, and further worked upon. Without these chance occurrences, the works would be incomplete. However, the choice of working tools is by no means random. The pen with which Andrej draws, scratches, and splatters turns each piece into a unique creation. Thus, the working methods of the exhibiting artist contrast with the everyday, swift consumption of sleek, aesthetically filtered images.
The reduction, the black and white or light and dark, unleashes the tension and entices us to invent stories and journey to our realm of experience. The technique of the works is time-consuming, artisanal, and organic. It emerges from the creative spirit, channeled through the artist’s hand onto the paper. It is bound to the body and its capabilities, demanding and potentially painful. In this way, the creation of the works stands at the other end of the spectrum of images in our time. Nevertheless, we rediscover our actual world interpreted and abstracted in these works.
Bio
Andrej Zwetzig – Artist, Illustrator and Tattoo Artist.
After receiving his artistic training in painting and graphics under the guidance of artist Juri S. Frantsuzov and a degree in Communication Design at HTW Berlin, Andrej initially worked as a freelance artist and illustrator, also dedicating himself to teaching.
The co-founding of a studio-gallery “wir sind Atelier” with Wadim Hermann marked an important step in his career.
In addition to the drawing pen, the needle has now also become part of his repertoire. Since 2019, he has been creating intricate dotwork motifs using the meditative handpoke technique without electricity, as well as delicate engravings in the style of the old masters with modern tattoo machine.