Absalon Kirkeby is the son of the famous interdisciplinary artist Per Kirkeby (1938), known mainly for his contributions to European neo-expressionism. He studied at Goldsmiths College at the University of London (2010) and the Danish Royal Academy of Art (2008-2013), where he adopted photography as his means of artistic expression.
His projects are somewhat diverse in terms of visual results, conveniently ranging between realism and abstraction. However, in all cases his use of photography is not linked to capturing an image at a specific time but rather to constant experimenting with forms and colours. This means that his works sometimes undergo heavy digital manipulation which results in digital brushstrokes or thick straight lines in bright colours that hide what in theory is presented and provide the photographs with a clear pictorial quality.
Even though some motifs can be discerned in his most recent works – generally connected to punk, such as skulls, computer items, tyres, etc. – his experimenting with different image processing techniques is much stronger. The intention to highlight their manipulation is what makes the resulting images allude to their own artificiality rather than to the motifs depicted. Furthermore, the type of processing to which they are subjected provides them with a visual touch that, once again, distances them from purely digital aesthetics and places them in a context of pictorial art.
Kirkeby has held numerous collective and solo exhibitions. His work has been exhibited at Art Rotterdam (Rotterdam, the Netherlands, 2014) and at other venues such as Vejen Kunstmuseum (Vejen, Denmark, 2013); Poul La Cour Museet (Vejen, Denmark, 2013); and the Fotografisk Center (Copenhagen, 2010).
Absalon Kirkeby is the son of the famous interdisciplinary artist Per Kirkeby (1938), known mainly for his contributions to European neo-expressionism. He studied at Goldsmiths College at the University of London (2010) and the Danish Royal Academy of Art (2008-2013), where he adopted photography as his means of artistic expression.
His projects are somewhat diverse in terms of visual results, conveniently ranging between realism and abstraction. However, in all cases his use of photography is not linked to capturing an image at a specific time but rather to constant experimenting with forms and colours. This means that his works sometimes undergo heavy digital manipulation which results in digital brushstrokes or thick straight lines in bright colours that hide what in theory is presented and provide the photographs with a clear pictorial quality.
Even though some motifs can be discerned in his most recent works – generally connected to punk, such as skulls, computer items, tyres, etc. – his experimenting with different image processing techniques is much stronger. The intention to highlight their manipulation is what makes the resulting images allude to their own artificiality rather than to the motifs depicted. Furthermore, the type of processing to which they are subjected provides them with a visual touch that, once again, distances them from purely digital aesthetics and places them in a context of pictorial art.
Kirkeby has held numerous collective and solo exhibitions. His work has been exhibited at Art Rotterdam (Rotterdam, the Netherlands, 2014) and at other venues such as Vejen Kunstmuseum (Vejen, Denmark, 2013); Poul La Cour Museet (Vejen, Denmark, 2013); and the Fotografisk Center (Copenhagen, 2010).