“I love
telling stories with my paintings. Each painting should be able to tease the
viewer into using their imagination to tell their own story.” Vincent
Kamp
Vincent Kamp is renowned for his dark and compelling artworks
and his pioneering immersive fine art experiences. His arresting portraits
are built on the assumption that we will always identify with rebels and he
is fascinated with those parts of society that many of us never encounter –
the urban subcultures that exist all around us yet are invisible to most of
us. His world may be an unfamiliar one, but it grips us utterly, drawing us
in with its drama, intrigue and undercurrent of danger.
For
much of his recent work, Vince has drawn on his love and knowledge of cinema
and created immersive cinematic experiences at a variety of glamorous
locations from Mayfair galleries to the Amber room at the Ritz. Heavily
influenced by films and TV, particularly film noir and gangster genres, he
has learnt a huge amount about composition and lighting from
cinematographers, and his mesmerising tableaux always evoke emotion and
intrigue about the backstory and future of the
characters.
He has now written four searing screenplays
(The Long Game, The Diamond Roulette, The Queen of Diamonds and Max and
Mischa) which he has brought to life with the help of actors including
Georgia May Foote, Tamar Hassan and Samuel Anderson. He has designed the
sets, hired a film crew and choreographed a stunning series of set pieces
through which he has been able to tell his story in a masterly collection of
cinematic images.
In terms of his style and technique Vince
also has a strong connection with a more familiar, but no less fascinating
cast of characters – the virtuoso portraitists of the Dutch Golden Age
including Frans Hals and Rembrandt. Looking at these works, it is impossible
to ignore their influence in the level of detail, the mastery of light and
shade and the sheer power of the subject to enthral and mesmerise the viewer.
In fact, his family come from Northern Holland, close to Amsterdam, and his
intimate knowledge of these artists was integral to his own
development.
Vince seeks his muses out, moving around
different locations, meeting people whose alternative lifestyles interest him
both as an individual and as an artist. As he says: “I like to paint people
that you don’t always see walking down the street, people who live and work
outside the conventions. You are unlikely to see these people in a suit or on
an iPhone. My paintings are all quite dark, subtle and intense. I’m always
imagining there’s something surreptitious going on in what might be a
perfectly innocent situation. I suppose I’m always looking out for something gritty,
an intriguing backstory, a moment of tension... something that will make you
wonder about these characters. Who are they? What goes on in the moments
before and after the painting?”
Vince is now acknowledged
as one of the most evocative and exciting figurative artists working in
Britain today. Demand for his originals and collectable editions has soared
and his collectors and sitters include Sam Smith, Tamer Hassan, Caprice and
Georgia May Foote.
