The exhibition is presented at the Georgian townhouse of 3 Fournier Street and it includes 10 paintings and 4 works on paper. The title of the show ’Spirit Resonance’ refers to one of the six principles of Chinese painting established by Xie He in the 6th century, whereby artists must translate and transmit their energy into their work.
In Leichtle’s imagery, the human figure hides behind masks, warped in displays of stillness and imaginary deformations. In The noise a life makes (2021), the figure is curled in a blanket on his bed wearing a semitransparent latex mask, translucent and crushed; in Object of nature (2020) a Monarch butterfly flies towards the bright familiar orange of a urinal screen, in stark contrast with the metallic surroundings; in the series Heads (2020), gravitational forces push, pull, twist and flatten defenceless faces.
Composed in the hiatus 2020-2021, Lukas Luzius Leichtle’s paintings showcase a new reality of life, opening intimate windows into the psychological effects of enforced isolation. External elements are reduced to a minimum or completely erased by neutral backgrounds that elude a sense of time passing, while putting under the spotlight gleaming tormented figures that shine with their own light.
In approaching his paintings, Leichtle follows the diktat of imprimatura or “First Paint Layer”, a technique particularly in use in Renaissance Italy. The process begins with the application of a light layer at the base of the painting, followed by gradual layers of darker tones. These preparatory steps allow for the ability to scratch away and illuminate from within, creating an iridescent effect that almost looks underwater. The light-receptive nature of this technique helps Leichtle interpret human skin as a velvety dynamic surface.
Lukas Luzius Leichtle (b. 1995) is a German artist currently studying at Weißensee Kunstochschule in Berlin.
