Interface
4 – 27 September 2008

Interface is an exhibition of recent work by Nicolene Louw and Heleen Schröder. Both artists use their sketchbook as primary source of inspiration for their work. They also explore a variety of methods of expressing the elusive nature of the human face. Heleen Schröder The core of Schröder’s artistic practice is in the intimate sphere of the sketchbook and journal. The books are a repository for thought, observation, research and experimentation and a space of absolute freedom. Translating, editing and interpreting this private proliferation of imagery for public display has in the past taken the form of printmaking (screenprinting, etching and lithography) and for the current exhibition resulted in ink wash and watercolour drawings as well as acrylics on paper. Even when handling a brush, she regards her work as drawings rather than paintings. Thematically, ‘Interface’ represents a formal investigation of the depiction of the human face. Schröder is intrigued by the endless variations of the face and its representations in the media, its capacity for expression and its demand to be interpreted. She suspects that while the face remains opaque, mysterious and illegible, it also obliges us to decode its expressions and communications.