KARLALISE HORSTMANS

My creative works are a diary of my attendance and an expression of my experience in the world.

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Language: As a former lawyer, I am interested in exploring the visual representations of subjective and objective meaning (text, symbols, codes) and the use of similar marks (glyphs, patterns) in which no meaning is attributed or shared - marks that infer something beyond language or thought, inhabiting a liminal space between surrealism and abstraction.

 

Sensory Experience: As a migraineur with high sensitivity to sensory input, my visual experience is complex and pronounced. My creative works are layered with low saturation pigment / materiality in order to manage and convey the richness of information that I experience in each moment. I am developing an academic portfolio concerned with the chromatic complexity of my visual perception.

 

Nature: For me, nature represents an antidote to perceptual overload. I am drawn to organic and floral forms (the noble sweep of magnolia petals and the astonishing architecture of orchids). I am also drawn to exploring spaciousness with color and volume - representing perceptual fields of calm. 

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My preference for spaciousness also drives my interest in scale (monumental vs intimate) and the patterns and energy of ground states (background/foreground/surfaces/voids).

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Figuration: As a contemplative, reflective observer, I am not concerned with achieving strict likeness in my figurative works. Rather, I convey my experience of the truth of a moment. I am engaged in a slow dialogue between process / method, deep observation and intuitive / sensory presence. I am drawn to moments in which I I discern something both intimate to the subject and universal to the human experience.

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Interplay / Contrast: In all of my creative works, I tend to explore the threshold between the structural and ephemeral, between systems and abstraction, between presence and absence, between the defined and undeclared.

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PRACTICE

My use of paint has evolved significantly, from thick impasto applications (reveling in opacity and clean chromatic distinction - creating a version of plastic hyper-reality) to a low saturation application of multiple layers of subtle or nuanced coloration, building chromatic complexity and rich dimensionality  beneath a smooth, luminous surface.

 

I prefer emergent forms and glazed layers, building dimensional imagery with undulating pattern, tone and resolution. There is often a broad swing between dark darks and light lights, almost surreal in nature. I like the paint to breathe, for there to be air in the strokes (often achieved with a cold wax medium to separate the pigment). I also frequently use iridescent glimmer to play with surface textures and shifting perspective. Generally, a closer inspection of my works (in real life) offers the reward of hidden details, inviting the viewer into a subjective and subtle, nuanced experience.

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In my sculptural works, I am extending the use of paper into (mixed media) structural forms, contrasting its light and dimension with the strength of works that appear to defy natural forces.