Thijs Zweers returns for his fifth exhibition at TORCH, presenting new artworks that reflect on human nature versus our constructed environment. He combines organic and artificial elements in each piece. The clash of artisanal landscapes and the artificial neon and plexiglass represents the many contrasts that live within us. How do we maintain our humanity in the midst of technology of our own making?
Modern technology is becoming smarter than the human mind. With all of the stories and fictions we create, we have strayed far from our natural habitat, but we remain living creatures with real emotions. Artificial intelligence is the latest chapter in man-made unreality, representative of an inner battle between nature and culture that dates back to Greek mythology, according to which Prometheus brought us knowledge and technology.
Thijs Zweers (1986, NL) has made it his trademark to start his artworks with a charcoal drawing of a landscape. These are not based on actual nature but on digital interpretations of it, such as video game environments. Something very digital is translated onto the analog canvas by hand. The real and the constructed find each other in one artwork, as drawing is combined with modern materials.
The neon is caught inside glass, which is artificial and rigid: if you try to bend it, it breaks. This contrasts with the organic shapes of the neon tubes meandering over the canvas. A similar juxtaposition can be found in a new element in Thijs' artworks: plexiglass. This material adds a water motif to the landscapes, suggesting there's more underneath the surface. It also serves as a mirror that makes the viewer part of the work, offering us a chance to reflect.
