The Hidden Side
West Berlin Gallery is proud to present the artworks of graphic designer, illustrator and fine artist Sebastien Feraut a.k.a Niark1 in „The Hidden Side“ – an exhibition dedicated to the collection of his most recent paintings and originals. One of the first artists to be exhibited at the gallery in a group show back in 2009, Niark1 returns, this time with the whole space to himself, and in his highly saturated graphic style, reveals the deeper emotions of the inner, sometimes tortured, soul.
With a multitude of inspirations, ranging from all kinds of music to create, to 80s horror films, David Lynch, Hayao Miyazaki animations, Francis Bacon, Basquiat, Constructivism, Cubism, graffiti and street art, subcultures, the list is endless, Niark1’s work reflects the pop surrealism of the Low Brow Movement. Like the roots of a tree on speed his paintings crawl and sprawl, filling up the whole canvas with the vivid creations of his imagination. Not even the tiniest spot of white remains, instead the flat surfaces he works on become transformed into intricately detailed bodies of voluminous geometric shapes, which seem to live and breathe, inhabited by the creatures of his mind. Although at first glance seeming naive and infantile, due to the cartoon like nature of the characters and the happy colours that fill the background, the works are far from innocent. In this densely saturated environment, slightly reminiscent of the tormented self-portraits of the surrealist painter Frida Kahlo, dark tales of the inner psyche unfold. Browns or blacks almost always dominate the scene. For Niark1, the creatures which he creates are not at all aliens, but in fact personifications of that which is closest to us – our inner selves and workings of the mind, the madness that is in us, that we hide.
Working primarily in acrylics, Niark1’s application of paint and the method he uses to define his surfaces is also unique. The process is never clean-cut. Similar to collage, the artist likes to work with layering, cutting and pasting bits of found newspaper to his surfaces, which usually consist of paper, old magazines, little wood boards or vinyl discs and then piling them with layers of paint to give them their desired depth. The result is a work so full of information that you can just keep on looking and never get bored. Just when you think you saw it all, in a hidden corner, you notice something new. Their infinite nature hypnotises as there is always space for discoveries.
The exhibition will display a total of about 40 paintings on paper, canvas and other various mixed media.
From 20:30 onwards, Souls United presents Piper & Marias
FreeSpaceJazzTranceElektroClashDanceFloor Concert
Blood Sweat Vector – Opening this Thursday
Only 3 days to go until we celebrate the big opening of our eagerly awaited next exhibition: WEST BERLIN GALLERY presents BLOOD SWEAT VECTOR…
West Berlin Gallery presents a group exhibition of the artist collectiv ‚Blood Sweat Vector’, running from November 13th to December 12th 2009. For the first time works by members of online-community Blood Sweat Vector will be brought together in the rooms of a gallery.
123Klan: We got the skills to pay the bills
Based on geometric variables like points, lines and curves and their composites in form of polygones, today computer generated vector graphics are an essential part of visual communication and illustration. Blood Sweat Vector, founded in 2008 by the designers Jared Nickerson (aka J3Concepts) and Brad Mahaffey as a platform for news, portfolios, recommendations and artistic exchange, is today one of the biggest networks for vectordesign. Some of the most important international vector artists are among the members. Blood Sweat Vector sees itself as an open channel for communication which encourages instant feedback and allows for interaction between likeminded designers.
All Blood Sweat vector members are highly regarded internationally and can look back on several cooperations, doing design for vinyl toys, skateboards, video games or fashion. In their portfolios you will find clients like Louis Vuitton, Kid Robot, Eastpack, MTV, Adidas, Sony, Artoyz and publications in magazines like Modart, WAD, Juxtapoz and many more.
Tokyocandies: Sweet Nightmare
In assembling an international selection of multifaceted styles the exhibition provides an overview of contemporary artistic vectordesign. The exhibition features works of more than 20 renowned artists, among them such staple names as Niark1 (France), 123Klan (Canada), Cuypi (France), Sheena Aw (Singapore), Maria Vittoria Benatti (Italy), J3Concepts (USA), Loungekat (Melbourne), Sublevel (Munich), Keuj (France), Tokyocandies (Italy), Charuca (Barcelona) and many more…
Niark1: Dead End
Join us for the Vernissage on Thursday, November 12th, starting 19:00. Some of the artists will be around, as well as Blood Sweat Vector founders Jared Nickerson and Brad Mahaffey.
42Below will care for excellent cocktails again and for the first time we will have DJs spinning, West Berlin Gallery’s own Guillaume aka DJ One (also founder of Vinyl kills MP3) back to back on the decks with Tatjana.
We are looking forward to see you on thursday, in the meantime also link up to the Facebook event :)
Featured Artist: Niark
Meet the aliens with Niark :)
‘We come in peace’
Hello Niark, nice to meet you! Please introduce yourself – where do you live, what are you doing?
Hey there! I’m Niark1 but you can call me Seb. I’m a freelance Graphic Designer / Illustrator based in Paris (France). I do graphics for a lot of different clients all around the globe like communication agencies, music labels, street wear brands, etc…
What are your sources of inspiration?
I have a lot of inspiration sources.
Living in Paris I have many opportunities to see exhibitions in galleries and museums. This allows me to examine the work of ‘others’ and that gives me some motivation. Of course the internet is the most important source of inspiration for me since the time I spend behind my computer screen ;). Furthermore I find some cool stuff in art books, street arts, magazines, movies, video clips, documentaries, etc… Music has a big role in my life too and is a big source of inspiration for sure.
Wallpainting
And can you describe your working process?
I don’t follow a specific working process. It depends on my inspirations, the customer, etc… I can start with some sketches, drawings or paintings and rework the graphics on my computer or I start directly on my computer. There is not just ONE good way to make art.
Your work is often based on plane, strongly colored elements and geometric patterns– does this feature have its roots in graphic design?
For some time I have been changing my style, trying to create graphics with simple shapes, but complex in their accumulation. I am very inspired by logos and vector illustrations. I like the potential impact of simple shapes and a limited color choices. Obviously sometimes I work with textures, especially in my paintings. Colors have an important role in my compositions and are an essential element in most of my work. I spend a lot of time to find the right color combinations although mostly black is the one that predominates.
‘Run 4 ur life’
I was wondering about the many aliens in your work. Are these aliens dangerous for the mankind? Can we trust them saying ‚We come in peace’?
The monsters that I represent in my illustrations are not really different from us after all. They are rather what we are on the inside. Things really dark, vices, or the madness that it is in us and in our thoughts, what one wants to hide. They are not really dangerous because they are only pictorial representations, but I can not say the same for the human race. Finally they are not coming in peace. But this is just a stupid message like ‘this is the end’ that I like to write on my artwork ;).
There’s a lot of character design in your portfolio, you’ve even designed Toys.
I have already been contacted by industries that manufacture toys. I would love to have a lot of my characters in volume. That would be great! But this requires hard work and the selection is pretty rough. However I have several times been invited to produce designs on existing toy shapes or make some hand-made customs for exhibitions.
You are part of the ‚Blood Sweat Vector’ collective. Can you tell me about what that means for you or your work?
‘Blood Sweat Vector’ is a good way to make connections with other artists and see or discover their work. It also helps to show your new work, while having some feedback and advice. I love the concept and I think I will send from other visual pending future upcoming events organized by Jared aka J3Concepts.
Just to let you know, folks: We will have a big ‘Blood Sweat Vector’ group show here at West Berlin Gallery in November!! And Niark will take part of course. Watch out for more informations coming soon!
I suppose the laFraise 15K exhibition is not your first show in a gallery. Where did you show your work before?
Yes I have already taken part in some gallery exhibitions before for collective shows. Recently I participated in a group show called ‘Battle’ at the Gallery Chappe in Paris with some guy from the 9eme concept crew and other artists. And I have already done some other exhibitions in Paris (with C215 at the Heart Gallery, at Artoyz with my buddy Bunka, Dadawan Madturnip, …) and in some other places in France with Customania. Also I had group shows in Belgium, UK, Australia, Singapore etc…
Thank you very much, Niark, and good luck for the future!
Thanks to you and for your interest in my work!
Take your time and browse through Niark’s portfolio and blog until there’s the next chance to see his works in living colour at West Berlin Gallery ;)
2011 West Berlin Gallery