Ole Aakjær | Miss Multitude
ON VIEW
July 30 - August 13, 2022
RECEPTION
Saturday, July 30, 3-7pm
LOCATION
66 Newtown Lane
East Hampton, NY
-
Ole Aakjær (b. 1962) is a Copenhagen-based, internationally-renowned watercolor and ink artist best known for large-format, highly symbolic works that celebrate the power of women. His distinct figurative paintings rely on bold colors and symbols to convey deep psychological empathy, while exploring the complexity and strength of their subjects. Ornate ink work comes into play with tattoos often sprawled across the face, neck, shoulders, and upper body. Text and characters, inspired by music, literature, poetry, film, religion, psychology, and cartoons are painstakingly applied with ink.
Influenced by comic book writers and artists Milo Manara, Enki Bilal, and Jean Giraud (pseudonym Moebius), Aakjær in the mid-1980s published an album at Carlsen, Denmark's main comic book publisher at the time, fulfilling his childhood dream. He operated an illustration studio since 1992. After 25 years as CEO of his own advertising and design agency, Aakjær was burnt out creatively. Reclaiming his childhood fascination and playfulness, he turned to watercolor painting in 2014. With a brazen nod to his previous career in his use of oversized keywords, Aakjaer’s large scale watercolors and techniques are unparalleled. The combination of ink and watercolor require great mastery as there is no room for error or corrections. The desired result must be achieved on the first application. This is in many ways the poetry of the watercolour – and of Ole Aakjær’s work.
International success came quickly, when Aakjær’s first solo exhibition sold out. Many subsequent shows in Montreal, Oslo, Paris, and London, sold out, leading to an international breakthrough and permanent gallery representation in New York, Montreal and Düsseldorf. He has already had two museum exhibitions – at Vejle Kunstmuseum, Denmark in 2021 and at Diocesan Museum, Andria, Italy in 2022. Upcoming is the museum exhibition at the Chinese Contemporary Art Museum, Chongqing, China in 2024. Aakjær has participated in more than 75 solo and group exhibitions since 2014. At the moment the artist lives and works in New York.
Chase Contemporary is pleased to announce a solo show of watercolor paintings by globally renowned Danish artist Ole Aakjær at its East Hampton, New York, location. Miss Multitude, featuring a selection of twelve large-scale, complex figurative paintings, will be on view from July 30 through August 13, 2022, at Chase Contemporary’s East Hampton gallery. An opening reception will be held on Saturday, July 30, from 3-7 p.m. at 66 Newtown Lane.
While his works depict women, Aakjær regards them as self portraits which “almost always deal with emotional themes from my personal life, and here I found an almost therapeutic satisfaction in being as honest about myself as possible.” Aakjær’s masterful, intricate paintings begin with meticulous application of dry, dense watercolor that transforms through the careful addition of water to create vibrant, lush colors that build texture and movement. His past career in advertising and design lends precision to his creative investigation of the feminne psyche. His psychological narratives are revealed through layering of tattoo art, symbols, letters, and motifs that compel a careful gaze.
Aakjær borrows from life experience, exploring themes that have intrigued or troubled him since childhood. His subjects are beautiful and feminine, resilient and empowered. Influenced by a wide array of films, comics, philosophy, literature, poetry, music, religion, and cultural references, Aakjær concedes that most of his paintings emerge from intuition. He delves into the multitudinous of the femine persona in search of his own identity. His newly-released second book Aakjær | Painted Soul is available for purchase through Chase Contemporary. His first book, Broken Porcelain (2018), was designed to whisk the reader off on a “wild journey” mapping the artist’s career.
Ole Aakjær (b. 1962) is a Copenhagen-based, internationally-renowned watercolor artist. Influenced by comic book writers and artists Milo Manara, Enki Bilal, and Jean Giraud (pseudonym Moebius), Aakjær in the mid-1980s published an album at Carlsen, Denmark’s main comic book publisher at the time, fulfilling his childhood dream. After 25 years as CEO of his own advertising and design agency, Aakjær was burnt out creatively. Reclaiming his childhood fascination and playfulness, he turned to watercolor painting in 2014. International success came quickly, when Aakjær’s first paintings sold and his first solo exhibition sold out. Many subsequent shows in Montreal, Oslo, Paris, and London, sold out, leading to an international breakthrough and permanent gallery representation in Copenhagen, New York, Paris, and Montreal. His first solo museum exhibition was held at the Vejle Kunstmuseum, Jutland, Denmark, in 2021, followed by a solo museum exhibition at the Chinese Contemporary Art Museum, Chongqing, China. Aakjær has participated in more than 70 solo and group exhibitions since 2014. Upcoming exhibitions include solo shows at Galerie LeRoyer in Montreal, and the Danish Cultural Center in Beijing, China. The artist lives and works in Denmark.
