Apr 21, 2024

Diana Lowenstein Gallery

Dirk Salz: The World is Deep

February 10 – April 1, 2024

O man! Beware! What does deep midnight thus declare? “I slept, I slept From deepest dreams I woke, and there: The world is deep And deeper than the day can bear Deep is its woe Lust – deeper still than misery Woe says: forego! But all lust wants eternity ‐wants deepest, deep eternity!”

In Zarathustra’s roundelay, a poem in the book Thus spoke Zarathustra, German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche marvelously expresses the limitation of human cognition and our simultaneously ‐ or maybe exactly for that reason ‐ existing longing for emotion and eternity.

Looking at the painted objects of German painter Dirk Salz, we feel an almost perfect match with this poem. The multi layered works of resin and wood, comprise an illusionary depth, evoking the feeling of gazing into a lake, and in vain ‐ trying to discover the ground.

By creating phenomena of light, color, and space, Salz intentionally triggers ambiguous views that indeed provoke an emotional wish for eternity

Dirk Salz sees himself as a painter first and a sculptor second. However, his work imbues a tension between the two – embracing a dichotomy between the visual and spatial fields. Forgoing the figural, the pieces themselves are paradoxically object and reflection. They position the viewer within the work. Salz’s carefully laid resin paintings are a result of a laborious process of pouring, smoothing, masking, and polishing to achieve something that is both built up by hand and machine labor. Yet for all their construction, they create a mirrored veil of the world around them. Surface and depth lie at the heart of Salz’s work. Thus, he creates his work pieces horizontally, yet viewers experience them vertically.

Dirk Salz was born in Bochum and lives and works in Mülheim an der Ruhr, Germany. He studied at RWTH Aachen University, where he received his strong background in materials and craft. Recent solo exhibitions include Tief unter den wassern das grünende feld (Deep beneath the waters the green field) at Galerie Frey in Salzberg, Austria, allzeit wache Möglichkeiten (always awake possibilities) at Galerie Löhrl, Mönchengladbach, Germany, and But all joy wants eternity, Victor Lope Arte Contemporáneo, Barcelona, Spain, amongst many others. Salz’s work has been featured at the Museum Kunstpalast, Düsseldorf, Germany, and Museum Katharinenhof, Kranenburg, Germany – of which he is part of the permanent collection. Salz was also the recipient of the 2021 Ruhr Prize for Art & Science.

About Diana Lowenstein Gallery

Since 1989, Diana Lowenstein has been part of the international art scene through her role as an active gallery owner and director, first under the name Der Brücke and now as the eponymous Diana Lowenstein Gallery.

Mrs. Lowenstein began her career as a gallerist in Argentina, fomenting young local artists as well as organizing exhibitions of world-renowned foreign artists.

Participating in high-caliber art fairs like FIAC in Paris, ARCO in Madrid, Art Basel, Art Chicago and Art Miami has been a staple in the gallery’s operation. Furthermore, Diana Lowenstein has been part of numerous organizing committees of these fairs, being able to influence their orientation to include a quality Latin American mix of talent.

In September of 2000, the gallery headquarters were moved to Miami. It is now based in Magic City District, the gallery has thirty-two years of specialized experience presenting contemporary art in the United States and across the globe. The Diana Lowenstein Gallery runs a year-long exhibition program in Miami and participates in the world’s most exclusive art fairs, presenting the works of its stable of international artists. She has made it possible for many of her exclusive artists to exhibit works in major world museums and biennales.

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