Martin De Zwaan

I studied Architecture at university, and based my thesis on minimalism. Both Architecture and Minimalism are disciplines that crosses across all facets of the arts and is something that has always inspired me. (Something to do with my upbringing, outdoors, rural living in Africa and England) And minimalism is what I am edging towards.

In architecture the principle is ‘less is more’ as Mies van der Rohe famously said. In music it is about a sound that transcends mere melody, boiling down sounds into a sheer (not necessarily melodic) collection of sounds within seemingly unconnected chords.

In art minimalism is about creating collection of colours and shapes into a definitely non-representative image. Think pictures absolutely without meaning. Abstract art is partly along the lines of this principle. However it is not the whole story. Abstract art can be too informative. Minimalism is completely non-representative. What does this mean? I don’t honestly know. Non truly minimalist artist does. Which is what is so compelling. to find minimalism I have explored every medium and gone through the ropes of representation. In order to strip images of representation one has to know what it is. to make such an image a...

University of Brighton

Dorset art weeks 2012, 2010.
Shaftesbury Art centre April 2013.
UrbanArt London, , 2013. 2014. 2015