Van Ray
The German street art artist Van Ray grew up under the influence of the Parisian “Pochoir Movement” during the Eighties. As a result of this early force of this kind of art, which prevalent implicates art as an expression of social criticism in public, he began to express his own view of society with the help of graffiti.
Due to personal maturation and developed abilities to deal with ubiquitous social and political problems of the Western society Van Ray broadened his artistic on hand skills by redeveloping methods like using stencils, stickers, paste-ups and sculptures. This incremental development is also reflected in his public work.
On the basis of his so far mastered artistic skills Van Ray was supervised in drawing and painting by the well known Susanne Ristow, this extensive process didn’t prevent him from simultaneous 3D animation and visualization experiments.
As a result of a personal wrap in 2007, accompanied by a movement to Cologne, Van Ray took this opportunity to establish the artist collaboration “fancyroom” which could be seen as an elaborate try to create a symbiosis of design and street art. The results were used by several textile manufactures as part of their products. Van Ray started simultaneously to offer general public access to mainly printed work by exhibitions.
Nowadays Van Rays work reflect a fusion of street art, pop art and contemporary art - retaining the basic elements of his distinctive artistic style without loosing sight of his intended social criticism. His recent work makes use of various techniques (aerosol paint, acrylic paint, collage and décollage) on iron sheets, acrylic glas, wooden slats or retro vending machines.
These arrangements can be contemplated in galleries from Cologne over London to Shanghai.
Exhibitions (Selection):
2021 - Life is a fucking rainbow, (so), Venet-Haus Gallery, Ulm
2021 - One Art Taipei, (fa), Gin Huang Gallery @ One Art Taipei, Taipei
2021 - AFA NL, (fa), Venet-Haus Gallery @ AFA Netherlands, Amsterdam.
2021 - KIAF, (fa), Pigment Gallery @ Korean Int. Art Fair, Seoul.
2021 - Fair for Art Vienna, (fa), Neue Kunst Gallery @ Kunstmesse Wien, Vienna.
2021 - Whaaaats Art Fair, (fa), Gin Huang Gallery @ Int. Art Fair, Taipei.
2021 - Love on, (so), Neue Kunst Gallery, Karlsruhe.
2020 - Contemporary Istanbul (VR), (fa), Pigment Gallery @ Virtual CI, Istanbul.
2020 - Sympathy (feat. Patrizia Casagranda), (so), Neue Kunst Gallery, Karlsruhe.
2020 - Fair for Art Vienna, (fa), Neue Kunst Gallery @ Kunstmesse Wien, Vienna.
2020 - Wikam, (fa), Neue Kunst Gallery @ Wikam, Vienna.
2020 - Art Karlsruhe, (fa), Neue Kunst Gallery @ Art Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe.
2019 - Art Bodensee, (fa), Neue Kunst Gallery @ Art Bodensee, Dornbirn.
2019 - Popeye No2, (gr), Galerie Wolfsen, Aalborg.
2019 - Metronome Festival, (l), Live Performance, Prague.
2019 - Art Karlsruhe, (fa), Neue Kunst Gallery @ Art Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe.
2019 - London Art Fair, (fa), Venet-Haus Galerie @ London Art Fair, London.
2018 - Art Bodensee, (fa), Neue Kunst Gallery @ Art Bodensee, Dornbirn.
2018 - Art Karlsruhe, (fa), Neue Kunst Gallery @ Art Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe.
2018 - Rusted Reflections, (so), Neue Kunst Gallery, Karlsruhe.
2018 - London Art Fair, (fa), Venet-Haus Galerie @ London Art Fair, London.
2017 - Oxidated Optimism, (so), Ahoy Gallery, Palma.
2017 - Fuck Boring, (so), Venet-Haus Galerie, Ulm.
2017 - Wikam, (fa), Neue Kunst Gallery @ Wikam, Vienna.
2017 - Art Karlsruhe, (fa), Neue Kunst Gallery @ Art Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe.
2016 - Diamonds & Rust, (so), 30Works Gallery, Cologne.
2016 - Art.Fair, (fa), 30Works Gallery @ Art.Fair, Cologne.
2016 - Wikam, (fa), Neue Kunst Gallery @ Wikam, Vienna.
2016 - Art Bodensee, (fa), Neue Kunst Gallery @ Art Bodensee, Dornbirn.
2016 - Not Limits, (gr), Galerie Hegemann, Munich