Richard Lewer, First holy communion, 2017, oil on epoxy coated steel, 38 x 48 cm. Image Courtesy of Sullivan+Strumpf and the Artist

Richard Lewer’s solo exhibition Life, Love and Death at Sullivan+Strumpf Singapore includes new paintings that are based on old photographs depicting everyday family life.

Lewer explores the events that shape us all as we grow up: family homes, milestones, celebrations, pets, friends, and first loves. His iterative process of applying paint and wiping it away from the steel and copper substrate allows his imagery to develop like a photograph and the resulting subjects are muted and blurred like fond memories of times gone by. The works will be shown alongside three of Lewer’s animations.

Richard Lewer, Funeral of my grandmother, 2017, oil on epoxy coated steel, 38 x 48 cm. Image Courtesy of Sullivan+Strumpf and the Artist

Lewer is known for his video and animation, paintings and delicate drawings, which evocatively rework some of life’s less-pleasant elements – crime scenes, illness, horror movies and extreme events. His work is accessible and familiar, with a critical edge that probes what is beautiful and sinister about our society without injecting a moralising tone or political message. Lewer’s focus is, however, less concerned with telling the concrete facts of a case; instead, his work explores the way that places can become repositories for the psychic residue of extreme events, painful activities or our deepest fears.

Richard Lewer in his studio. Image Courtesy of Sullivan+Strumpf and the Artist

Venue: Sullivan+Strumpf Singapore, 5 Lock Road, #01-06 Gillman Barracks, Singapore 108933

When: 2 Sep - 1 Oct 2017,

By: Sullivan+Strumpf