Gert Mathiesen: Heerup museum fra d. 12/9 2019
Gert Mathiesen Bio:
Danish artist, Gert Mathiesen (1951-2013) was a Danish painter, printmaker, and ceramicist. Born on March 27,1951 in Esbjerg, Denmark, Gert was the youngest of three children. Although he had a relatively happy childhood, he experienced a lot of death at an early age, losing his father at age 7 and three sisters previous to his birth. Gert attended Esbjerg’s innovative school, Boldesager, which was progressive and considered way ahead of its time, boasting a swimming pool, extensive science labs and artistic apprenticeships. After gymnasium, Gert studied at the Kunsthandvaerskolen (Design School of Arts and Crafts) in Kolding, Denmark. There he learned basic techniques and ended up specializing in ceramics. Gert was always full of wanderlust and soon took his studies on the road, learning about wood firing in La Borne, France and salt glazing in Hohr-Grenzhausen, Germany. It was at this point that Gert met his partner, Lisbeth Tvede, also a ceramicist, and together they had a son, Jonathan. During these years, Gert stayed for longer periods of time in Dieulefit and Vence in southern France and in Grottaglia, Italy. Gert apprenticed with a variety of various well known ceramicists in Germany, France and Italy including Bjorn Wiinblad, the German potter Meulindick, and upon his return to Denmark, for the manufacturer Royal Copenhagen. Always seeking adventure, Gert first came to the United States in 1986 working as a potter in Martha’s Vineyard, an island off the coast of Massachusetts. In 1986, he opened a ceramics studio in Somers, New York (home of Barnum and Bailey Circus) and soon after met American artist Pam Smilow, who had just returned from an extended period of time living and working in Barcelona, Spain. In 1988 they moved in to New York City together and began working alongside each other in a studio at The Schoolhouse in Croton Falls, New York. In 1993 their daughter Morgan was born and Pam and Gert continued to commute back and forth from their New York City apartment to their studio through 2002. This was a particularly fruitful time and in addition to his ceramics work, Gert began to branch out from ceramics into other fields of art: painting, drawing, printmaking and working collaboratively on many projects together with his wife. They had many gallery exhibitions in the United States and Europe and sold extensively. In 2002, Gert briefly moved his studio to Beacon, New York before deciding that he wanted to be in NYC full time. He opened his new studio in 2004 and continued to work on East 64th Street until his unexpected death of an aneurysm in 2013. Gert remained always the innovator, exploring a variety of media and techniques, constantly challenging himself into new areas of study. Using linoleum, woodcut, paint and monoprinting techniques in very unique ways, Gert produced a large quantity of works on canvas, paper, ceramics, and linoleum: truly individual works of art in his own very distinguished voice. |