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Karl Bielik

Discipline:

Painter, Musician, Gallerist

Location:

London E8 4EW

ABOUT:

I make visceral process driven oil paintings where the surface evolves out of chance encounters between marks and colour, the paintings are often heavily layered and reveal the history and doubt of the decision making.

I work on thirty or so paintings at a time which range in scale from intimate to large. Drawings, diagrams or photographs may inform the work in its formative stages, but essentially my work emerges from the physical process of painting.

Loose oily wounds and thick emulsions offset light glazes and dribbles, I paint, wipe out, paint over, turn the canvasses around, print, blot, mask, pour paint, scrape and scratch. I shift from one piece to another and don’t focus on completion, just nudging a painting from one position to another.

The studio is the place where practically everything happens and the paintings are given a long incubation time to evolve and develop a sense of completeness. In contrast to my sometimes emotive imagery, banal solitary words form my titles, tempering and balancing the character of my work.

WORKS:

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'Working Class Creatives' responds to a need which is too often overlooked in the arts; that of the barriers facing working-class artists from getting on in our sector. They are instrumental in initiating much-needed change that will see the art world become more inclusive and reflect the society it purports to serve. I often search their database in my research, it is a vital resource for any arts professional working in culture today. That they have got this far on so little financial resource is remarkable and I am excited to see what they will achieve with further support.” Beth Hughes, Curator, Arts Council Collection.

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