Virtual online art exhition titled “Transient”
Live event at 9pm, Saturday, 12th December 2020
Last April, following the closure of Art Galleries and exhibition spaces, Katja Wittmer sat in her studio in Ennis, Co. Clare, and contemplated the impact of the lockdown on her art, and her need to share her artwork with others.
Over the following months, balancing home-schooling, lockdown restrictions and her time in the studio, she resolved to find an outlet, a pathway to those that love, and are excited by, contemporary abstract art. After months of work in designing and building her online profile, she finally launched her own website in November.
The feedback has been been exceptional. The clean lines and presentation of in situ artwork capture the colour, vibrancy and evocativeness of her artwork, allowing the viewer to get a real sense of each painting.
While having an online website gave Katja an outlet to share her works, as every artist knows, an exhibition is special. “It is an interactive experience where you can share the passion for your work with others in a beautiful setting”, commented Katja recently. And therefore she is delighted to announce her first ever “virtual” online exhibition titled “Transient”.
The exhibition pulls together a body of Katja Wittmer’s work and presents a holistic reflection of the emotions that have been experienced in this challenging year.
The exhibition space will be hosted on her website and shared across two virtual rooms in a bright and airy setting. Virtual Room 1 will host Katja’s Mixed Media on Canvas artwork from 2020 and 2019. Her title piece, “Transient” holds pride of place and reflects the emotionally turbulent year that we have all experienced. Virtual Room 2 hosts her encaustic artworks allowing the viewer the opportunity to experience a new medium in Katja’s repertoire.
Virtual Room 1 – 27 Mixed Media on Canvas works
In her Mixed Media paintings, Katja Wittmer emphasises the hidden, the subtle, and the profound. Her technique of dripping paint, scattering textures and the use of intense multi-layered colours challenge the boundaries of perception.
Hence her signature piece for this exhition, “Transient”, captures the moment yet accentuates the volatility of our present environment and emotions. Her paintings show the complex facets of humankind – highs and lows, light and shadow, beauty and distortion, love and hate. Her art deals with looking behind the scenes and exploring that emotional abyss. Her work aims at altering the awareness of the individual’s emotional consciousness through conceptual dialogue with the physical painting.
Virtual Room 2 – 18 Encaustic Artworks
Since 2019, Katja Wittmer has been exploring the ancient medium of encaustic, where beeswax and resin are melted, coloured with pigment, and then solidified again. This exciting medium offers a huge amount of spontaneity and challenges the artist in merging the different wax layers in a controlled manner. The various layers create an intriguing depth and luminosity for the viewer to explore. Her encaustic works reflect the rollercoaster nature of our emotions, often intertwining and evolving beyond our control. They are complex, interwoven and extreme, yet the viewer can find balance, beauty, and even harmony in a transient moment of reflection. This is Katja’s first exhibition of encaustic works.
The relationship Katja has with her audience is central to her artwork, and the feedback has been phenomenal. Clients testimonials have reflected the emotional connection that people find in her Artwork, as Christine Trahe commented “ whenever I look at my piece, what I think about is nature, and the effects that can have on your emotions.” Karen Brennan elaborates by stating Katja’s art “lifts the spirits, makes your home a happy one” and it is something that will bring “beauty and joy into your home.”
Like so many other industries, the art industry has experienced huge disruptions as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. With all exhibition activity reduced and restricted, online exhibitions such as “Transient” allow art lovers, the public and children to experience the power of art in a new and innovative way. As Katja explains, “I am looking forward to getting back into physical galleries in 2021, but realistically online galleries are here to stay, and they provide me, like many other artists, the opportunity to share my works on a global platform while working and living on the West coast of Ireland. “Transient” maybe a moment in time this Saturday night, but hopefully 2021 brings new and engaging experiences through art”.