Kasper Sonne

Dirty Blonde

Christian Larsen presents Dirty Blonde, artist Kasper Sonne’s first solo show in Stockholm.

Sonne, born 1974 in Denmark, lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. In the show Dirty Blonde, composed of new paintings from two on-going series, an installation and a video piece, Sonne shows a cross-section from his consequent artistic practice, which has drawn significant international attention in the past two years.

In his art, Sonne deals with a difficult existential human challenge: overcoming our natural inclination towards binary thinking. Dichotomies: black and white, perfection and imperfection, chaos and control, friend and enemy, help us navigate the immediate reality while obstructing the universal inner pull towards unity and belonging. In order to live a balanced life, we need to be able to embrace chaos and control in equal measures, and learn to accept a unified reality field without any borders at all.

Kasper Sonne’s work can be seen as meditations over this human dilemma. He paints perfectionistic monochromes and then burns large holes in the canvas, or pours toxic solvents over it, destroying the paint and creating new layers. He covers large canvases with volcanic ash, a disruptive and dangerous material, which also possesses healing qualities and is used in the cosmetic industry. He cuts exhibition spaces in two with a curtain of heavy chans or rubber strips, creating a border which ceases to exist for those who choose to cross it. In his video works, the artist uses charged words as BAD or FUCK YOUR as a start for existential statements projected in endless succession, rendering them meaningful and meaningless at the same time.

Having managed to unify powerful destructive urges with mastery executive control bordering on obsessive, Kasper Sonne has created an austere yet charged visual language which is instantly recognizable and calls for a term of it’s own - Minimalist Punk.

Kasper Sonne holds a BA from the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, Schools of Architecture, Design and Conservation. Sonne has exhibited widely at institutions and galleries internationally, including Palais de Tokyo, Paris, SAPS museum, Mexico City, SALTS, Basel, Den Frie – Centre of Contemporary Art, Copenhagen, Primo Piano, Paris, Bergen Kunsthall, Bergen, Seventeen Gallery, London, The Hole, New York and Krinzinger Projekte, Vienna. His work has been featured in magazines such as Artforum, Art In America, Modern Painters and Flash Art.

LARSEN WARNER

LARSEN / WARNER is a contemporary art gallery in Stockholm with an extensive international exhibition program. We represent established, mid-career and emerging Scandinavian and international artists. The gallery is committed to nourishing the careers of represented artists, while introducing to the general public other significant international artists who have rarely, if ever, exhibited in Sweden. We are also a leading destination for secondary market works, offering carefully curated historical and secondary pieces that complement and expand our primary program.