Untitled

Since Sigurður Árni Sigurðsson graduated in the early 1990s, landscape has been a constant in his work. But he does not show us untamed nature; instead his focus is on manmade phenomena such as groves of trees and golf courses. The landscape portrayed in Sigurður Árni’s work is evidently planned and organised – and he often appears to use nature as a tool for exploring the nature of the painting. Shadows are an important element of his paintings; and it is the shadows that connect what we see on the canvas with the outside reality we are familiar with. Colours and shapes are also important in his works. Frequently the colours draw attention for their brightness and their unreal quality. The shapes, on the other hand, are familiar: circular forms reminiscent of plates, spheres, balls or discs – generally floating on the canvas. Sometimes these forms even resemble holes in the foreground of the work, inviting us to look beneath the surface, but as we approach closer that turns out to be an optical illusion. As the artist paints in oils on canvas without visible brushstrokes, he is able to draw attention to the painting as an optical illusion – and in that way he takes the observer on a journey of exploration in the picture space. As a rule his focus is on the foreground and background, or the surface and what lies beneath.