Elemental: An Introduction to the Work of Cordula Kaiser
Cordula Kaiser is interested in what she refers to as a “visual dialogue” between the viewer and a visual stimulus. The artist examines how we respond to objects, colours, light and form. Her paintings explore an emotional and sensory perception of the world. Moving beyond the literal and figurative, her works distil emotion into abstract gestures. Abstraction is used as a vehicle to explore how shape and colour make the viewer feel. When asked about the importance of colour in her work, Kaiser explains, “Colours are inspiring my mind, enabling me to connect my perception with feelings, to experience [and] reflect my inner and outer world, to be free.”
"Growing" Era of Global Warming Mixed media on canvas / 70 x 100 cm
Kaiser’s paintings celebrate the materiality of paint and surface. The artist’s background as a stone sculptor clearly informs the sculptural nature of her approach to paint. Thick layers of impasto create textured surfaces that suggest sand and soil, water and sky. As such her paintings have an elemental quality. The deep red of High Priestess is rich and volcanic, its layered surface evocative of fired ceramics. Marble - Sea captures the dynamic interplay between sea and sand in a landscape seen from above.
Magellanic Saurian Galaxy Mixed media on canvas / 70 x 100cm
In Magellanic Saurian Galaxy, Kaiser has captured something enigmatic and visceral, reminiscent of an unearthed artefact or a planet’s surface.
“Abstraction and landscapes are related to my personal experience, that everything is in a powerful process of being and passing,” states Kaiser. The scale and composition of her paintings have a monumental landscape quality. She often works with polyptych and diptych formats, composing a painting across several panels. Working in mixed media affords the artist the freedom, in her words, to “use a wide range of materials and methods to develop and to realize creative ideas.”
Phoebe's Spectre Mixed media on canvas / 80 x 110 cm
Kaiser hopes that her work ignites an intuitive and sensory response, a response that exists beyond language and speech. The artist explains, “A newborn child starts from the very first moment to touch its environment to explore intuitively the essence of its being, to stay alive and grow.” She hopes her paintings create an opportunity for the viewer, “A moment of joy to be and to explore more.”