On the occasion of his third solo exhibition at Beck & Eggeling Contemporary, Wolf Hamm will present a series of new works brought together under the title “The Short Time We Have Left”, which makes reference to the duration of human life and the question of what makes us individuals.

Hamm's paintings are narrative, yet at the same time enigmatic compositions, in which man and nature encounter each other in front of sceneries rich in contrast: Figures are embedded within the scenes; they approach each other and separate again. Their appearances between beauty and horror portray elementary human experiences. Hamm's personal environment and his family structures play a decisive role within his art. They provide impulses and inspiration, which are then consolidated in his paintings into complex carriers of meaning. His works invite the viewers to analyse their meaning and significance in relation to the meaning and significance of their own lives, which result from their own individual views of the world.

The multi-layered narrative technique and occasional inclusion of culturally encoded stylistic devices such as comics or manga figures have become characteristic feature of Hamm's painting in general: “Naturalistic elements stand side by side with ornamentation and abstraction. Realism, pathos, ornate decoration and restrained forms correspond with each other in daring compositional acrobatics and never let the viewer arrive in peaceful order. The vibrating complexity maintains its restlessness even behind glass”, as the author Rainer Beßling concludes.

The format of Hamm's paintings has increased over time, and it becomes clear that he sees his pictures as being part of a greater thematic context. In his most recent, highly ambitious project “The Great Processes”, he dedicates himself, across eight cyclical panels, to the evolutionary stages of human history. “The Departure”, one of these monumental panoramic works, plays a central role within the current exhibition. In addition to works behind acrylic glass, drawings – for the first time also in smaller formats – and prints will be on view.

Wolf Hamm was born in 1974 in Delmenhorst and completed his studies at the College of Fine Arts in Bremen and the Academy of Art in Düsseldorf, where he was a master student of Prof. Siegfried Anzinger. He has been exhibiting his works in solo and group exhibitions for more than ten years. Wolf Hamm lives and works in Berlin.

The artist will be present during the DC Open weekend. The exhibition will be accompanied by a catalogue.

For additional information, high-res images and catalogues, please contact:
Dr. Antonia Lehmann-Tolkmitt
antonia@beck-eggeling.de
Tel: +49 (0)211 210 79 10 or +49 (0)151 270 96 232

Beck & Eggeling
Bilker Strasse 5
Düsseldorf 40213 Deutschland
Tel. +49 211 4 91 58 90
Tel. +49 211 4 91 58 99
info@beck-eggeling.de
www.beck-eggeling.de