Jonas Bechtloff

a stone starts to grow
Soloexhibition at Ten Haaf projects, Amsterdam, 2020

Ten Haaf Projects is pleased to announce “A stone starts to grow”, an exhibition by Jonas Bechtloff (b. 1992). As an active observer of every day life, the artist receives most of his inspiration from impressions he gets while travelling. His journeys take him through both the countryside and the city. Producing drawings and paintings from these impressions, he forms a starting point for sculptures. Jonas Bechtloff works with a range of materials. During his studies he examined methods of tribal and classical Roman art. Sculptures were then made applying more modest techniques then we have today. Like an alchemist, Bechtloff studied different ways to manufacture materials. He came to the conclusion that he needed to build his own kilns to fully understand the art of making a sculpture. These handmade kilns, each different depending on the sculpture, are fired with wood or gas. Considering the temperatures inside the kilns and the materials are variable, every sculpture is unique. The current collection displays sculptures made of wood, glass, metal, ceramic and clay, all created this year. They depict romantic landscapes, figures, animals and industrial buildings. The viewer is drawn into the imaginary world of Jonas Bechtloff. In this figurative yet recognisable world, every sculpture has its own exciting and aesthetic appearance.