[Gallery Walk] Strange Spaces, Lonely Backs... Portraits of Us in the Corona Era

PACE Gallery, Team Aytel Solo Exhibition 'Untitled' Until January 16 Next Year

Team Aitel 'Interior(Shadow)', 2020,
oil on canvas, 54.9cm×70cm
[Photo by Provided by Pace Gallery]

[Asia Economy Reporter Byunghee Park] When looking at the paintings of German artist Tim Eitel, two questions arise: 'What are the figures in the paintings looking at? And where are they heading?'

These are questions that modern people, living busy lives, want to ask themselves or others. Perhaps for this reason, Eitel is known as an artist who expresses the alienation and lonely inner world of contemporary people.

Face Gallery Seoul branch in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, is holding a solo exhibition titled "Untitled (Interior)" by Eitel until January 16 next year. Eitel held his first solo exhibition in Korea at Hakgojae Gallery in 2011. It was also his first solo exhibition in Asia. He held another solo exhibition at Hakgojae Gallery in 2017.

This year, two solo exhibitions of Eitel were held in Korea. Prior to Face Gallery, Daegu Art Museum held his solo exhibition titled "Tim Eitel_Untitled (2001-2020)" from July 7 to October 18.

Team Aitel is answering reporters' questions at an online press conference held at the Pace Gallery Seoul branch on the 2nd.

"Loneliness is the disconnection of social interaction.
Its first meaning is pain, but
it is an opportunity for self-reflection and realization.
In the current COVID-19 situation,
it is something even more necessary for everyone."

At this Face Gallery exhibition, Eitel presents about ten new works painted this year in Paris, France. Eitel mainly paints the backs of figures in unfamiliar spaces. The faces of figures looking forward are only clearly outlined, while their eyes, nose, and mouth are blurred, giving a distant feeling. Eitel pursues ambiguity in his paintings. The ambiguously rendered figures evoke a sense of emptiness, as if something is lost. The backgrounds, like the figures, are not detailed but blurred, adding to the loneliness.

In an online press conference, Eitel attributed two meanings to loneliness. "The first is pain. Loneliness felt due to the disconnection of social interaction, as now, can be seen as pain. On the other hand, I think loneliness is necessary. It becomes an opportunity to reflect on oneself and gain insight. Especially in modern society where communication is through email and smartphones, loneliness is necessary. In the current infectious disease pandemic situation, loneliness is also necessary for everyone's health."

Eitel, who says loneliness is necessary, does not use a smartphone. "Because I want to focus on my work. In disconnection, I can concentrate on my work."

Perhaps because he shows the lonely inner world of modern people, many domestic publishers have used his paintings on book covers. Munhakdongne used Eitel's 2004 oil painting titled "Boat" as the cover image for literary critic Shin Hyung-chul's first essay collection "Community of Feeling," published in 2011. Munhakdongne's literary imprint Nanda used Eitel's paintings for the essay collections of the late literary critic Hwang Hyun-san: "Night is the Teacher," "A Small Favor," "Well-Expressed Misfortune," and "There Is Much I Do Not Know."

Publisher Jakga Jeongsin also used Eitel's 2008 oil painting "Matratze" as the cover image for Choi Soo-chul's novel "Flower of Poison," which won the Dong-in Literary Award last year. Hankyoreh Publishing used Eitel's painting for Shin Hyung-chul's 2018 essay collection "Studying Sadness with Sadness."

Eitel said, "I know that my paintings have been used a lot on book covers," adding, "I hope they were good books."

Works by Tim Eitel, frequently used as covers for domestic books. From the left, "Boat" (2004), used as the cover for literary critic Shin Hyeong-cheol's essay collection Community of Feeling; "Untitled (Observer)" (2011), used as the cover for literary critic Hwang Hyun-san's essay collection Night is the Teacher; and "Mattress" (2008), used as the cover for writer Choi Soo-cheol's novel Flower of Poison.

In the new works presented by Face Gallery, Eitel used cooler colors more frequently. This seems related to the difficult situation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. He said it was hard to work because of COVID-19. "Several times in Paris, movement restrictions were imposed, making it difficult to go to the studio. So I often painted small watercolor paintings at home."

Eitel explained, "In the case of oil painting, you can make corrections and slowly develop the image, but watercolor cannot be corrected and must be painted with concentration in a short time." This exhibition features both oil paintings and watercolors.

Eitel always carries a camera. He takes photos of his surroundings and transfers the scenes from the photos to his paintings. "There are many photos scattered in my studio. I transfer the ones that catch my eye onto canvas."

Eitel could not visit Korea this year due to COVID-19. However, during his previous two exhibitions at Hakgojae, he visited Korea and captured Korean landscapes with his camera. He transferred these photos onto canvas but has not yet exhibited them.

Born in Leonberg, Germany, in 1971, Eitel majored in literature and philosophy at the University of Stuttgart. After German reunification, he moved to the former East Germany and studied art at Leipzig University from 1997 to 2001.

Leipzig was the second-largest city in East Germany after Berlin during the GDR era. It has always been a city of culture and art. After division, while West German artists pursued abstract and conceptual art, East Germany maintained traditional painting methods.

After reunification, many aspiring German painters moved to the former East Germany to learn basic and traditional painting techniques. Eitel gained recognition as a member of the figurative painter group "New Leipzig School" within this trend.

Team Aitel 'Interior(Shadow)', 2020,
oil on canvas, 54.9cm×70cm
[Photo by Provided by Pace Gallery]

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.