Sunday September 9 – AT388 in Rotterdam was the space for a small gathering on account of the opening of the new exhibition of works by Rose Goehring. Her work is shown in combination with works by Fernando Rosas and Santiago Garcia Pilotto. AT388 is owned by Jules Woei-a-Tsoi and Dick Reinders, who wanted to create a space for the art they love. On their website it reads that they want to show mostly Argentinian artists, but also like to confront these works with temporary exhibitions by Dutch artists. Rose Goehring is one of these Dutch artists. Goehring spends a lot of time outdoors and it shows in her work. She created small paintings with nearly abstract landscapes, which appeal to your emotions. When I say abstract I mean in the sense that one can see the paintings represent landscapes, but they are without any detail, it is mostly the different tones in colour and the wooden panels that shine through that give you the impression of a landscape. Goehring uses mostly earthtones, greys and greens, which help invoke a certain mood. Some feel really intense and they enforce each other, but the way they are hung – one with different height and distance from the next – lightens them up again. Her forest series is a little different from her landscapes in that they show a little more detail, one can see trees in different perspectives, but the ambiance is the same. And here too the playful way in which they are put up on the wall makes them less onerous. In the press release the artist states that she took inspiration not only from nature but also from poems by Pablo Neruda and two of the poems accompany the paintings in the exhibition. These poems really work with the feeling created by the paintings. One can see why they inspired Goehring and they express what you feel when standing in front of these pieces of art. Or over them for that matter because the gallery owners have been very creative in the way these paintings are presented. In the back of the space there is a very low platform with three of Goehrings’ works on it. The viewer has to bend over them to look at them, which ensures a more dynamic way of looking. The same goes for the drawings of Fernando Rosas which are spread on a table underneath a plate of glass. One can just sit at the table and carefully study these pieces. These works represent a counter to Goehrings’ paintings, they are figurative, detailed and the subject revolves around human beings. These works might on first sight seem more real than Goehrings’ landscapes, but on a closer look these images are haunting and a bit fantastical. They represent the dark side of the human soul. As such they have a quite different effect with the viewer. The artworks that connect these two opposites is made by Santiago Garcia Pilotto. He makes what I would call cityscapes, which are also near abstraction, like Goehrings’ paintings. But Pilotto’s landscapes are manmade and in that sense the oppose the art by Goehring. Some of his works also feature human beings and he uses drawing techniques combined with painting, creating a good bridge between the works of Goehring and Rosas. The lighting in this exhibition is not great to my taste. The spotlights are hung to close to the works which creates strong light and dark places on the artworks. In some cases this causes part of a painting to be clear and the other is left dark. In other cases, like with Goehrings’ work, one painting is illuminated and the next feels less importance for having no highlight. That said, the division in the exhibition is very good, works are hung dynamically and still fittingly. The actual eye catcher of the show is a large painting by Pilotto, but it has been hung somewhat in the back and around a corner to give full attention to Goehrings’ temporary exhibit. Otherwise the Pilotto would overpower Goehrings’ paintings by sheer size and use of bright colours. This does not mean Goehring’s work is less interesting, but it does not seize you at first sight, you have to take some time to let them grow on you. AT388 Lodewijk Pincoffsweg 388 3071 AS Rotterdam www.at388.nl