Sculptural
beauty inspired by daily life is the guiding force behind Lothar’s
work.
In his unique artistic language, he translates small everyday
items into huge miracles, bringing life and warmth to the cold solidity of
bronze, creating a surface that demands to be touched and a vision that
demands to be explored. His work offers a surreal combination of dreams and
reality, gravitas and playfulness.
This is seen clearly in
his acclaimed collection of cherries for example, which presents perfect
pieces of fruit that invite you to take a bite, despite the fact that some
pieces are as much as a metre high. These hyper-realistic pieces sit side by
side with fantastical interpretations of emotion in the form of huge, bold,
mesmerising and, occasionally, broken hearts.
Born in
Paramaribo, Surinam, Lothar lived in the Netherlands from 1966 to 2000 and is
now based in Vence, France. He exhibits his statement sculpture across
Europe, the United States and Singapore.
Lothar creates his
breath taking bronze sculpture in a foundry using the time honoured lost wax
method which was first used 6,000 years ago. Remaining true to these
traditional methods adds a layer of gravitas and authenticity to his highly
contemporary and stylish work.
He forms the original figure
in wax, then coats it with plaster in order to make a mould. The wax is then
heated and poured away leaving the hollow mould ready to be used in the
casting of the pure bronze sculpture. The work is then finished by hand, and
for Lothar, this stage is key to the success of each piece, whether it is a
hyper realistic oversized cherry or a strangely beautiful and surreal broken
heart. Creating the patina is a painstaking and highly skilled process in
which the surface of the sculpture is burned with acids to achieve the
desired shade and texture before wax is once again used, this time for
polishing.Each piece is then mounted on a highly polished reflective base to
ensure that they are perfectly balanced and presented with maximum
impact.
