FARBE
Gerold Miller, Danni Pantel, Tobias Hoffknecht
Galleria A+B opens Farbe, an exhibition curated by Giorgio Verzotti in the gallery spaces in Brescia that includes works by Gerold Miller, Tobias Hoffknecht and Danni Pantel. For the occasion, some twenty works are on display, most of them specially created for this exhibition.
Enamel or industrial paint on stainless steel. Flat surfaces or three-dimensional volumes. Oil and acrylic on canvas. The media and materials differ, but the common trait is colour, so much so that the title of the exhibition, Farbe, is the translation from German of the word ‘colour’.
The exhibition at the Galleria A+B indeed compares three German artists from two generations: Gerlold Miller, the best known of the three, and the younger Tobias Hoffknecht and Danni Pantel.
The differences are immediately noticeable; Pantel’s barely restrained gesturalism stands out clearly from Miller’s almost ‘optical’ geometric play, while Hoffknecht’s sculpture obviously opens up a completely different relationship with space.
Colour is the common trait thanks to the sense of emotional intensity it infuses, be it on Miller’s surfaces, played out in tonal or timbral chords, or on Hoffknecht’s tubular structures treated to bright monochrome layers or – on the contrary – toned down to black non-colour: in both cases, the colour layers are applied mechanically, highlighting the self-evident structure. Pantel, on the other hand, uses mottling to dampen the energy of manual brushwork, almost marginalising it favour of the expressive power of pure colour.
The result is a balanced dialogue in which the three German artists express themselves in a concerto where diverse styles complement each other perfectly, thanks to the declinations and continuity provided by colour.
The Farbe catalogue, edited by Giorgio Verzotti, will be available in December.