Stefan Kürten: Somebody Else’s Dream
Stefan Kürten’s paintings expose the dogged attempt to make life perfect, at least on the surface. Stale bourgeois interiors, corporate lobbies, and suburban homes recall the expectations and dreams embodied in the last four decades of economic progress in the Western world. Some of Kürten’s imagery comes from 1970s books about living better and creating the perfect setting for a classy cocktail or dinner party. Other images are fabricated from his own recent snapshots of buildings and homes in Germany and America. The paintings shimmer with an interior radiance achieved through the artist’s subtle use of metallic gold paint.
Kürten’s paintings are about longing, dreaming, waking up and dreaming anyway. The subjects, while realistically represented, appear fragile, unstable, poised to disintegrate at the slightest question of their value. There is also something sweetly pathetic about these scenes – we recognize with compassion the tenacious belief in beauty, perfection, and ultimate happiness.
Stefan Kürten was born and continues to live in Düsseldorf, Germany. He recently had a solo exhibition at Museum im Kulturspeicher in Würzburg, Germany. A catalog will accompany the exhibition.
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Stefan KürtenBlow Wind Blow, 2004oil and gold/bronze on canvas46 x 58 inches/116.8 x 147.3 cm
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Stefan KürtenDeath is Not the End, 2004oil and gold/bronze on canvas12 x 10 inches
30.48 x 25.4 cms -
Stefan KürtenWhat Now My Love, 2003oil on canvas43 x 51 inches
109.22 x 129.54 cms -
Stefan KürtenKrefeld, 2004oil and gold/bronze on canvas18 x 23 inches
45.72 x 58.42 cms -
Stefan KürtenSandalwood, 2004oil and gold/bronze on canvas18 x 23 inches
45.72 x 58.42 cms -
Stefan KürtenSeptember is Here Again, 2004oil and gold/bronze on canvas58 x 46.5 inches
147.32 x 118.11 cms -
Stefan KürtenInsurance, 2004oil and gold/bronze on canvas23 x 18 inches
58.42 x 45.72 cms -
Stefan KürtenBlue Days, Black Nights, 2004oil and gold/bronze on canvas74 x 105.5 inches
187.96 x 267.97 cms -
Stefan KürtenInnocent, 2004oil on canvas46.5 x 58 inches
118.11 x 147.32 cms -
Stefan KürtenComfort, 2004oil and gold/bronze on canvas58 x 46.5 inches
147.32 x 118.11 cms -
Stefan KürtenVenice, 2004oil and gold/bronze on canvas18 x 23 inches
45.72 x 58.42 cms -
Stefan KürtenMonschau, 2003oil and gold-bronze on canvas17.75 x 23 inches
45.085 x 58.42 cms -
Stefan KürtenFrom Here to Eternity, 2004oil and gold/bronze on canvas56 x 74 inches
142.24 x 187.96 cms -
Stefan KürtenOut of Sight, Out of Mind, 2004oil and gold/bronze on canvas23 x 18 inches
58.42 x 45.72 cms