Mirko Schallenberg – Info

Still life? No, much more.

 

The striking aspect of Mirko Schallenberg’s works is the way he stacks everyday objects – into so-called pyramids of things. The artist creates works that give rise to many questions. In his pictures, the viewer discovers stones, food, books, honeycomb, glasses, vases – objects that are usually not associated with each other at all. Nevertheless, the artist succeeds in achieving a harmonious relationship between such things with the aid of specific arrangements.

 

Mirko Schallenberg was born in Northeim. In the early nineties he studied at the Braunschweig University of Art and was a master class student under Professor Hermann Albert. In the meantime, he himself teaches at the painting academy Akademie für Malerei in Berlin.

The artist introduces an element of calm into the chaos of things. Even if his arrangements seem quite fragile, the structure of the objects that are depicted radiate a certain stable solidity. He arranges the objects using painterly methods, thus transforming the whole into a harmonious pyramid of things.
The various things are shown in enlarged form – therefore, their significance is augmented, for objects are losing their presence in this virtual age. In our society with its affinity for technology, objects have become abstract symbols. In his works, the artist grapples with the question of existence or being as such.
Thanks to the muted colour palette he uses, the objects achieve a state of tranquility and exert a meditative effect on the viewer. The artist renders the background as well as the objects in the foreground working with a subdued, flat range of colours, achieving an overall work that exudes peacefulness.
Lines, surface structures and textures, material and consistency, enlargement and proportion, balance and dynamics, metaphysics, materiality and colour all play a crucial role in his works.

By way of the painting process Mirko Schallenberg tames chaos and opens up new doors for our imagination that lead to the worlds that lie beyond. His aim is for the viewer to enter those worlds and find his place within the constellation of objects.