Henrik Eiben

Born 1975

Lives and works in Hamburg, Switzerland

Henrik Eiben's multifaceted works are full of deceptions and wilful contradictions. Influenced by American minimalism the artist's paintings, works on paper as well as installations evolve from a reduced vocabulary of predominantly geometric shapes. However their composition is not derived from mathematical systems but instead develops intuitively. Eiben predominantly works with unorthodox materials mixing fabrics ranging from cheap fake leather to cashmere felts or knitted wool with construction materials as well as applying a variety of painting techniques. His love for fabrics as a medium first began during his studies in the USA. It was then that Eiben decided to work with such a wide variety of materials, each chosen for its ability to serve as a means to accomplish a preconceived idea, rather than for its inherent attributes. Many of Eiben's pieces at first appear as clearly defined abstract art-works, however on closer inspection their often skilfully hidden sub-context reveals a broader and more nuanced approach to abstraction. The clever interaction between distinctly different mediums as well as highly contrasting colour schemes allow Eiben an artistic freedom, which result in exceptionally engaging works of art.

Biography

Henrik Eiben was born in Tokyo in 1975 and lives and works in Hamburg. He studied at the Academy of Visual Arts and Design in Enschede (1997–2002), the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore (2001), and the Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden Künste in Karlsruhe under Silvia Bächli (2002–2004).

Eiben's paintings, works on paper, and installations develop from a reduced vocabulary of predominantly geometric shapes, influenced by American minimalism. His compositions evolve intuitively rather than from mathematical systems, and he works with an unusually wide range of materials, combining fabrics such as fake leather, cashmere felt, and knitted wool with construction materials and varied painting techniques. His engagement with fabric as a medium began during his studies in the United States.

His work is held in a number of public and institutional collections, including the Weserburg Museum für moderne Kunst in Bremen, the Galerie der Gegenwart in Hamburg, and the Weishaupt collection in Ulm, among others. He received the New Position Award in Hamburg in 2011 and a scholarship from the Fundação Armando Alvares Penteado (FAAP) in São Paulo in 2010. Eiben has exhibited extensively across Europe and North America, with solo presentations at Bartha Contemporary, London; Galerie Christian Lethert, Cologne; Schwarz Contemporary, Berlin; and Galerie Nikolaus Ruzicska, Salzburg, among others.