Francois de Necker working in his studio
The National Art Gallery of Namibia (NAGN) is hosting an exhibition by Francois de Necker consisting of paintings and panels created over the past three years. The exhibition titled Paintings and Panels, opened on 12 September in the Main Gallery of the National Gallery.
De Necker says his inspiration comes from his daily experiences, whether visual or otherwise. “For this exhibition I retained my commitment to involving myself with my personal imagery distilled from what I experience around me whether real, imagined or fantasized” he said. Like all artists De Necker hopes to set up a dialogue between the viewer and the artwork. He however offered some thoughts about this exhibition, although he feels that words can hardly do justice to his artwork as it communicates in visual modes. Speaking about his creative process, De Necker says that the more his own creative process challenges him the more stimulating it becomes for him to really try and understand what art and especially his own artwork, is about. De Necker’s long-time friend and opening speaker for the exhibition, Professor Andre Du Pisani explained that De Necker’s work is introspective and meditative, arrived at by discreet manipulation of forms often derived from genre settings. “Views from his house/garden and through windows of exterior landscapes, he captures the dazzling incandescence of light. On first impression, the canvases appear flat; and the paintings do not cede their inner substance to cursory inspection. Their semi-abstract geometrical construction harbours a subtle universe, reiterated in the technical and formal realization: the rectangular planes are invaded by symbols and passages of sensitive brushwork; positive becomes negative, solid becomes near-transparent.” De Necker’s artwork has always explored the meditative rather than the descriptive. Of late his expressive means has shifted even more towards this as he delves deeper into those aspects relating to his inner self and fantasy. Not wishing to be restricted by reality and the depiction of specifics, it allows him to be totally absorbed by the process of painting itself. It is in this process that the distilled imagery meets the action of painting. ‘Paintings & Panels, Panels & Paintings’ will be on display until 30 September. Entrance is free.
