MUSEUM COLLECTION
Vicki Sleet
WHEN WE ACKNOWLEDGE THE PAST, WE ARE ABLE TO RETHINK THE PRESENT WITH CONFIDENCE AND FAITH.
Artist Frans Smit turns his gaze to the old masters, reinterpreting some of his favourite, iconic pieces and revealing a deep reckoning of the processes, realities and significance of those who have gone before him.
There are few artists who have not, at some stage of their careers, been exposed to the unequivocal skill and proficiency of the old masters. In fact, most will agree that they have played an integral role in their earliest days in art school. The extraordinary depiction of light by the Dutch masters, the power and presence of their subjects and environs as captured by the likes of Guido Reni, Raphael, Rembrandt, Vermeer and Whistler – it is impossible to ignore their roles in the evolution of modern art and indeed, contemporary art.
Frans Smit’s newest body of work, Museum Collection,is alucid yet imagined escape from the present, a deep dive into some of the individuals who have influenced many artists’ processes for hundreds of years now. His pieces twist the past with an intensity and in a thoroughly modern manner – a reflection of how Smit feels that our 21st century obsession with moving forward discards the faith in a civilisation inherited from our ancestors. That society’s obsession with change and high alert political correctness runs the risk of deleting the enormous wealth of what has come before.
The absurdity and manipulation of many of his pieces is his take on a new reality, “I see myself as collaborating with their own respective practices from afar. Their literal works becoming a part of my practice, trying to embody them as I recreate their work, being very much a part of the past while creating in the present”, says Smit.
The addition of new rich tones and textures, pronounced glossy oils, and bold, intentional strokes, bring an undeniable sense of melodrama to the arena. Smit’s treatment showcases his simultaneous fascination with the freedom of abstract expressionism and historical paintings, and ultimately, disruption, with his lavish marriage of the two.
In an era dominated by fake news, bite sized and unsatisfying on-screen information and often fleeting forays into subject matter, original artworks are all the more relevant – and the intended antithesis of ‘newness for newness sake’. Nothing compares to the intensity of experiencing the result of an artist’s complexities and process in the flesh; their skillful strokes and painstakingly crafted layers of paint that tell a compelling story and ignite conversation and reflection. Frans Smit’s new works and interpretations couldn’t be further from the past and their original intentions but their modern iterations and commentaries remain powerfully familiar, - that humanity’s culture is built on the back of each generation, parents, grandparents and great grandparents.
For Christopher Moller, the show's significance runs deep “We can learn a lot from the past, especially the mistakes, but there is a lot we can and should embrace and build on. It’s easy to forget just how much we have inherited from generations that came before us – be it literature, music, science, mathematics and of course – art.”
