“GUESS WHO’S BACK” A Solo Show by SNAR
Opening: Saturday 16 September 4pm - 8pm
RSVP: gallery@vroomandvarossieau.com
16 - 24 September 2023
Vroom & Varossieau is thrilled to present "Guess Who’s Back," a remarkable exhibition featuring the latest works by Dutch artist SNAR. After a hiatus of 15 years, SNAR emerges with a body of new artworks that marks a significant shift in his practice. Renowned for his previous techniques like stenciling and spray-painting, SNAR has undergone a transformative journey that has led him to explore new realms of creativity.
“This work is what I, as a painter, was meant to make. Unlike most of what I did before, these paintings are averse to any commercial finery, have a focus that was lacking before.”
This new focus might have something to do with where they were made. In Drenthe, in the quiet countryside, within the splendor of nature all around. It definitely had something to do with how they were made, namely sober.
“These paintings were not created in a whirl of rabid and stupid intoxication. One fine morning, I simply started painting. At ease and without any expectations from myself or anyone else. The work kind of jettisoned from somewhere deep within himself. A place of creative inspiration I thought I’d lost in the aftermath of artistic fame and the substance abuse it triggered. I’m so happy I was wrong about that.”
One thing is for certain: all this quiet reflection, taking his time with each work, results in a series that is quite simply better than anything he did before. The lack of false pretense, the sheer beauty of their truth, the gutsy way of painting, leaving room for interesting “errors” it all adds up to baffling artworks.
As in the past, the new work is abstract-expressionistic at its core and it came to fruition in a stream of consciousness. That hasn’t changed. An important difference between the old way of working and the new way, is the time Snar takes between his creative outbursts.He works fervently for maybe an hour or two and stops. Sometimes for days on end. And when the muse comes knocking, he goes back into his shed, oversees his earlier work, and starts again for a couple of hours.
“I believe these longer intervals, letting the work marinate a bit, gives me a clearer view of what they need to become. When I leave a painting, even forget about it for a while, the surprise when I see it again is very inspiring. It’s like the fuel that gets me pumping again.I used to paint over so much of my work. Just because I was there and wasted. Now I don’t. And the work is much better for it.”
Snar’s new paintings speak of a beautiful struggle. One between his bursts of inspired creativity, the time he takes re-fueling and the versatility of his materials and styles. Each canvas becomes a compelling tug of war between spray-paint, acrylic, oil sticks and Poscas. But also between abstract expressionism, wordplay, illustrations and figuratism. In the hands of a lesser artist this may result in a chaotic mess. But not with Snar, on the contrary, it all clicks like never before.