I’m thrilled to be part of the upcoming group show at ART[s] Gallery where I will present my newest series of wall sculptures. Simone Jansen’s art gallery is based in a delicately designed home on a centuries old estate in Noordwijk, the Netherlands. The group shows are curated by Yvonne de Jong and Simone Jansen.
With this new series of artworks, artist Donald Schenkel continues a search of combining oil paint with other materials: wood in particular since fall last year. There is something interesting in turning the organic look of wood into this industrial, fine polished surface. This smooth surface actually contrasts with the grain of the linen. In this way, the wood allows Schenkel to create abstract shapes (which have played a recurrent role in his artistic practice). These shapes divide or sometimes cut through the paintings and play with cutting through the illusion of the gradient as an endless depth. In this way Schenkel is searching for new ways to look at abstraction and minimalism by using their antithesis of craft and traditional materials.