Barry Camps
LandE scape
CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW
And in particular, how does your cultural substratum inform the way you relate yourself to art making and to the aesthetic problem in general?
During my education I was able to experiment with materials and ideas. Having contact with both people who already had a lot of experience and people, like me, which were very much searching and in a starting phase was very energetic and stimulating. My world evolved around art and I still very much remember the night long discussions I had and the deep commitment to the arts. During my time at the AKI 2( now The Dutch Art Institute) I came in contact with a more diverse but very small group of international artists. It was a very intense period in my life and I felt very fortunate that I was able to study for 2 more years in such a select and talented group. Teachers were able to give you a lot of individual attention and I made sure that I made use of that. I worked day and night. My works and especially my technique got much better, but also the subject matter was getting more important. I learned that a technique should be in service of what you like to express. After my time at the AKI 2 I moved to Antwerp Belgium and there I came in contact with a lot of new artists, but maybe even more important a different attitude. The surreal culture of
Belgium combined with the more abstract one of the Netherlands made the artist who i am today. It’ s a combination of the heart and mind. The more intellectual approach which I got from my Dutch roots and education and the“ don’ t overthink everything” and play mentality and letting your emotion into the works which I got and still get from my Belgium experience.
Your approach is very personal and your technique condenses a variety of viewpoints, that you combine together into a coherent balance. We would suggest to our readers to visit http:// www. barrycamps. nl in order to get a synoptic view of your work: in the meanwhile, would you like to tell to our readers something about your process and set up? In particular, are your works produced gesturally, instinctively? Or do you methodically transpose geometric schemes?
I guess it’ s a combination of both. Most of the time I start with a geometric scheme or a color gradient. Not a lot of people know that but I almost always start with very bright colors which I tone down layer by layer. I like the fact that my paintings get their light from underneath. I think it get’ s them more depth and gives me the opportunity to work in layers without losing my light. After the set up it becomes very instinctively. Action-
29