South African visual artist Corné Eksteen

Corné Eksteen

Free State | 6 artworks for sale

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  • Reverberation V - Painting by Corné Eksteen Reverberation V
    Painting / 26 x 26 cm
    R4 600
  • Virtual Sunset - Painting by Corné Eksteen Virtual Sunset
    Painting / 26 x 26 cm
    R4 600
  • Cut Into Decibels - Painting by Corné Eksteen Cut Into Decibels
    Painting / 80 x 80 cm
    R21 000
  • Parkade - Painting by Corné Eksteen Parkade
    Painting / 95 x 105 cm
    R32 000
  • Unknown Summer - Painting by Corné Eksteen Unknown Summer
    Painting / 60 x 60 cm
    R17 250
  • Suspirium II - Painting by Corné Eksteen Suspirium II
    Painting / 105 x 95 cm
    R32 000
  • Reverberation II - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    Reverberation II
    Painting / 20 x 20 cm
  • Reverberation IV - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    Reverberation IV
    Painting / 20 x 20 cm
  • Suspirium - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    Suspirium
    Painting / 100 x 100 cm
  • Keeping A Lid On It - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    Keeping A Lid On It
    Painting / 20 x 20 cm
  • Memory Eroded - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    Memory Eroded
    Painting / 100 x 100 cm
  • Anachronism I - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    Anachronism I
    Painting / 100 x 100 cm
  • Elevation - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    Elevation
    Painting / 20 x 20 cm
  • A Ripple At Dawn - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    A Ripple At Dawn
    Painting / 50 x 50 cm
  • Memory Eroded - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    Memory Eroded
    Painting / 80 x 80 cm
  • iOS Exploit: I - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    iOS Exploit: I
    Painting / 100 x 100 cm
  • The Lemon To The Left - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    The Lemon To The Left
    Painting / 50 x 50 cm
  • Staccato VI - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    Staccato VI
    Painting / 120 x 120 cm
  • Singularity I - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    Singularity I
    Painting / 100 x 124 cm
  • Spatial Frequency I - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    Spatial Frequency I
    Painting / 120 x 120 cm
  • Still From The Metaverse III - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    Still From The Metaverse III
    Painting / 50 x 50 cm
  • Staccato - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    Staccato
    Painting / 80 x 80 cm
  • Transubstantiation II - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    Transubstantiation II
    Painting / 124 x 100 cm
  • Ternion II - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    Ternion II
    Painting / 100 x 124 cm
  • Ternion - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    Ternion
    Painting / 100 x 124 cm
  • The Arab Knight - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    The Arab Knight
    Painting / 100 x 100 cm
  • The Pornographer - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    The Pornographer
    Painting / 100 x 100 cm
  • Youth Without Youth - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    Youth Without Youth
    Painting / 80 x 80 cm
  • The Father Figure - Painting by Corné Eksteen
    The Father Figure
    Painting / 120 x 120 cm
Free State-based artist Corné Eksteen dissects the visual world through a scientific lens to explore the vibrational nature of matter through traditional genres like still life and portraiture.

Works are created from reference photos taken in the artist's studio or on site. These photographs are then printed and cut into vertical or horizontal strips. Every second strip is removed from the image leaving only sections of the original image intact. This segmented image is transferred to the canvas, and during the painting process each omitted strip is painted as a mirror image of the previous strip. It’s a complex process of reproducing the visible strip in the reference photo and creating a mirror image of it, while maintaining a visual connection with the following strip in the image. The result is that lines and forms in the image start to resemble sinusoidal wave forms. Parts of the image will be changed or broken down to form a pattern: wrapping paper or wallpaper often serves as inspiration.

Works are primarily produced alla prima.

Eksteen (also known as XTN) was born at Zastron, South Africa on October 6, 1973. He studied towards a BA in Fine Art at the University of Pretoria and UNISA (Not completed).

He spent several years working in related fields from Menswear Designer to various positions in the Interior Decorating and Digital Design Industries. As a visual artist, Eksteen has been actively working and exhibiting since 1996, taking part in numerous group and two-person exhibitions on an international level. He has reached the finals of prestigious art competitions such as the ABSA Atelier Competition. His work is currently included in several private collections across the world as far afield as Germany, Sweden, and the USA.

Solo exhibitions:
2023
"Fifty" | AITY Gallery - Franschhoek, South Africa
"soundWORKS" | SPACE Curated - Hermanus, South Africa

2022
"waveWORKS" | Art in the Yard Gallery - Franschhoek, South Africa

2019
"Nexus" | StateoftheART Gallery - Cape Town, South Africa

2017
"Otherness" | StateoftheART Gallery - Cape Town, South Africa
"Anomaly" | artSPACE Durban - Durban, South Africa
"Portraits" | RESTOCK Gallery - Funchel, Portugal

2016
“Assimilation" | artSPACE - Durban, South Africa

2015
"Disintegration" | artSPACE - Durban, South Africa

2009
"Inferno" | Temporary gallery in warehouse - Bloemfontein, South Africa

2007
"Skin" | Temporary gallery in warehouse - Woodstock, South Africa

 
Art Fairs:
Singapore | Affordable Art Fair Singapore | Barnes Collective Gallery | Singapore | November 2022
United Kingdom | Affordable Art Fair UK | Barnes Collective Gallery | Battersea London | October 2022
 
 
Group Exhibitions:
2024
Summer Group Exhibition - StateoftheART Gallery, Cape Town
 
2023
Time & Tide Wait For No Man - StateoftheART Gallery, Cape Town

2022
Protégé | EADT the emerging artists development trust | V&A Waterfront | Cape Town | South Africa | January 2022
Mariposa | Curated by Donavan Mynhardt | Rust-en-Vrede Gallery | Durbanville | South Africa | February 2022
The Art Fair Collection | State of the Art Gallery | Cape Town | South Africa | February 2022
Affordable Art Fair UK | Barnes Collective Gallery | Hampstead London | United Kingdom | May 2022
The Grand 6 | Rust-en-Vrede Gallery | Durbanville | South Africa | June 2022

2021
Paradise Lost - Chapter 1 | SPACE Curated | Hermanus | South Africa | January 2021
Ongoing Group Exhibition | The Woodstock Art Gallery | Woodstock | South Africa | February 2021
Paradise Lost - Chapter 2 | SPACE Curated | Hermanus | South Africa | April 2021
Naked Faces | Woodstock Art Gallery | Alliance Française Du Cap | Cape Town | South Africa | May 2021
Pop-up Exhibition | Art and Wine Gallery | Somerset-West | South Africa | May 2021
Tollman Bouchard Finlayson Art Award Exhibition | Hermanus FynArts | Hermanus | South Africa | June 2021
Madiba (Tribute Exhibition) | Community ZA | Durban | September 2021
Tollman Bouchard Finlayson Art Award Exhibition | Hermanus FynArts Gallery | Hermanus | South Africa | August / September 2021
Portrait Award 2021 Top 40 Finalists Exhibition | Rust-en-Vrede Gallery | Durbanville | September - November 2021
Thami Mnyele Fine Art Award 2021 Top 100 Finalists Exhibition | Online Exclusive | October - November 2021
Portrait 100 | The Rupert Museum | Stellenbosch | South Africa | November 2021
Night of a Thousand Drawings | Rossouw Modern | Hermanus | South Africa | December 2021

2020

ART Innsbruck | ARTsouthAFRICA | Innsbruck | Austria | January 2020
Art from South Africa / LHM | ARTsouthAFRICA | Crailsheim | Germany | January - April 2020
Same bed different dream | Eye 4 Art Gallery | La Lucia | South Africa | February 2020
The Grand 5 | Rust-en-Vrede Gallery | Durbanville | South Africa | May 2020
Against All Odds | mARTina.gallery TTAG | Berlin | Germany | June - July 2020
KunstSommer im KPM-Quartier | The Travelling Art Gallery | KPM Quartier | Berlin | Germany | August / September 2020
Emotion | The Showroom Art Gallery | Pretoria | South Africa | August / September 2020
Rust-en-Vrede Rescue Exhibition | Rust-en-Vrede Gallery | Durbanville | South Africa | November - December 2020
Curated Group Exhibition (Gallery Launch) | The Pencil Art Foundation | Umhlanga Rocks | South Africa | December 2020
Kanonkop Summer Exhibition | The Showroom Art Gallery | Stellenbosch | Kanonkop Wine Estate | South Africa | December 2020
Curated Group Exhibition | SPACE Curated | Hermanus | December 2020

2019
Life is a portrait | RESTOCK GALLERY | Funchel | Portugal | January - March 2019
UMHLABA / LAND | KZNSA | Durban | South Africa | March / April 2019
KKNK | The Showroom Art Gallery | Oudtshoorn | South Africa | March 2019
Palate, Plate, Palette | Rust-en-Vrede Gallery | Durbanville | South Africa | April - May 2019
ARTMUC 2019 | ARTsouthAFRICA | Isarforum | Munich | Germany | May 2019
VryFees 2019 | The Showroom Art Gallery | Bloemfontein | South Africa | July 2019
TTAG2019 | The Travelling Art Gallery TTAG2019 | Munich | Germany | July 2019
Passage | Two Person Exhibition (with Nicole Pletts) | Rossouw Modern | Hermanus | South Africa | October 2019

2018
Disruption | KZNSA Gallery | Durban | South Africa | January 2018
KKNK | The Showroom Art Gallery | Outshoorn | South Africa | March / April 2018
New Dawn | Eclectica Design and Art | Cape Town | South Africa | June - August 2018
The Art of Pairing | COMMUNITY | Durban | South Africa | June 2018
Aardklop | The Showroom Art Gallery | Potchefstroom | South Africa | October 2018
Night of a 1000 drawings | Rossouw Modern | Hermanus | South Africa | December 2018

2017
Forward - The Breathing Space | Durban | South Africa | May 2017
The universe next door | Fynarts 2017 - Rossouw Modern | Hermanus | South Africa | June 2017
Vryfees 2017 - The Showroom Art Gallery | Bloemfontein | South Africa | July 2017
Figures & Faces | The Showroon Art Gallery | Pretoria | South Africa | September 2017
Inspiration Tables 2017 | Rossouw Modern | Windhoek | Namibia | September 2017
Aardklop Arts Festival | The Showroom Art Gallery | Potchefstroom | South Africa | October 2017
South African Art | RESTOCK | Funchal | Portugal | October 2017
BuzzArt 2017 | KZNSA Gallery | Durban | South Africa | November 2017
SPACE | Rossouw Modern | Hermanus | South Africa | December 2017

2016
Invisible - KZNSA | Durban | South Africa
Show 3 - Loading Bay Gallery | Durban | South Africa
Beneath the skin - State of the Art Gallery | Cape Town | South Africa
Show 5 - Loading Bay Gallery | Durban | South Africa

2015
Inspirations VI: Durban Yesterday, Now and Tomorrow - artSPACE durban | Durban | South Africa | July 2015
artSPACE Durban Artists Choice Awards 2015 - artSPACE durban | Durban | South Africa | June 2015
Transformation, Incubation, Activation - KZNSA | Durban | South Africa | January / February 2015

2014
Transmutation - Karoo 1 Gallery | De Doorns | South Africa | October / November 2014
artSPACE Durban Artists’ Choice Awards 2014 - artSPACE durban | Durban | South Africa | July 2014
Grassroots - KZNSA | Durban | South Africa | January 2014

2013
Rebirth - Living Life Shed | Ladybrand | South Africa | October 2013

2011
Contemporary Free State - Johanness Stegmann Gallery | Bloemfontein | South Africa | June 2011

2010
Modern Free State - Johanness Stegmann Gallery | Bloemfontein | South Africa | June 2010

2008
Art from the Eastern Free State - The Cabin | Clocolan | South Africa | July 2008
Running Exhibition - Mocca Chino's | Ladybrand | South Africa
Art of Africa - Temporary Pop-Up Gallery | Maseru | Lesotho | September 2008
Naive - Uber arte | Berlin | Germany | February 2008

2004
Seascapes - Gallery on the bay | Gordon's Bay | South Africa | November 2004

2003
Vespertine - Pop-up Gallery | Ladybrand | South Africa | April 2003
Travelog - Gallery on the bay | Gordon's Bay | South Africa | August 2003
Travelog - CoJo's | Muizenberg | South Africa | November 2003

2002
Group 9 - Art Bizarre | Somerset-West | South Africa | December 2002

2001
Washed - Basotho Hat | Maseru | Lesotho | April 2001

2000
ABSA L’ Atelier 2000 - (Provincial Finalist) Johannes Stegmann Gallery | Bloemfontein | South Africa | March 2000
Versus - The Basotho Hat | Maseru | Lesotho | October 2000

1999
ABSA L’ Atelier 1999 - (Provincial Finalist) Pretoria Art Association | Pretoria | South Africa | March 1999
ABSA L’ Atelier 1999 - (National Finalist) African Window Museum | Pretoria | South Africa | August 1999

1998
Volkskas Atelier - (Provincial Finalist) Johannes Stegmann Gallery | Bloemfontein | South Africa | March 1998
Volkskas Atelier - (National Finalist) Pietersburg Art Museum | Pietersburg | South Africa | August 1998
Spiritualized - Ladybrand Library Hall | Ladybrand | South Africa | December 1998

1997
Volkskas Atelier - (Provincial Finalist) Johannes Stegmann Gallery | Bloemfontein | South Africa | March 1997
Bowie Outside - Precinct Gallery | Johannesburg | South Africa | August 1997

1996
New South African Art - South African High Commission | Maseru | Lesotho | September 1996

Which new trends or South African artists do you find inspiring at the moment?
I’m very excited about the rise of Contemporary African Art on the global art scene. There is so much exciting and groundbreaking work coming from the continent, not only presenting the continent to the world in fresh new visual ways, but also propelling previously overlooked artists and art communities to center stage as the new leaders and innovators in the art world.

Which South African deceased artist do you most admire and why?
Andrew Verster. Apart from loving his entire body of work spanning 5 decades, I had the pleasure of getting to know Andrew before his passing in early 2020. His natural tendency to reinvent his visual language several times throughout his career and in later years, his ability to reference his own oeuvre in new work is inspiring. Over the last few months my work has come to increasingly incorporate pattern as one of my primary motifs, something that Andrew used masterfully in his work, as such I have a revived interest in his work and techniques.

If you could only have one piece of art in your life, what would it be?
?This changes very often, but for the last year I’ve been obsessed with the piece “Initiation” by Polish painter, animator and muralist Robert Proch. I had been watching his work develop with great intrigue and fascination for several years, until his sudden death at age 33 in July 2019. This specific work was directly referenced in several of my own pieces during the spring of 2019 as an acknowledgment to his brilliance and influence.

Pick three artists who you would be honored to exhibit with – and why
MJ Lourens, Wim Botha and Frikkie Eksteen.
Although I hold them all in the highest regard as artists and adore their work, this list might be more sentimental in nature. We have a shared experience, having all studied at the same institution at the same time. Something magical was brooding at the University of Pretoria Visual Arts Department in the early 1990’s. Many of our most formative experiences on our creative journeys were at the hand of the same lecturers at the same time. It would make for an intriguing exhibition.

How did you get started? Did you always want to be an artist?
I think I was born an artist, it’s my default setting, much to the annoyance of many people along the way. My parents hoped for a Chartered Accountant and my grand parents saw me as a Pastor, alas it was always going to be some sort of creative path. ?There’s been many little detours into other creative industries from clothing designer, graphic designer to web designer, but I could never get rid of the oil and turpentine in my blood.

What are some of the key themes you explore in your work?
For the larger part of my career I’ve been exploring the concept of identity through my work. How the sense of self interacts with gender, orientation, religion and society as a whole. In recent years there’s been a shift, which I think is becoming even more prevalent in my new work. The new focus is more on perception, how we process sensory information and to what degree we rely on information to make sense of ourselves and the world. It’s the age-old adage of who are we, what are we doing here, why are we here with the added complications of algorithms, social media and tons of other white noise interferences.
 
What should people know about your art that they can’t tell from looking at it?
You’re not looking at the answer – you’re looking at the question! My works are more conceptual as opposed to mere documentation or storytelling. They are by the nature of their construction more metaphorical and sometimes even allegorical.

Tell us more about your creative process.
This is something that changes often. Every time I embark on a new body of work, my process gets adjusted to suit the concept or look of the work best. It can be as small a change as a new primary pigment selection, or a complete overhaul of the studio and how the workflow is structured.

Currently creating a painting starts with reference photos taken in the studio or on site. I print out the image and cut it up in vertical strips, like the effect a paper shredder would have on a photo. Some of these strips are then removed from the image leaving only sections of the original image behind. This fractured image is then scanned and printed out in various formats, full colour, black and white etc. They are stuck on the wall surrounding the canvas and each serve as a reference in some way, be it tone, hue or temperature for a certain part or motif in the image.  The final reference photo thus only contains sections of the original image, it is roughly drawn on the canvas and once the painting process starts each omitted vertical strip is painted in as a mirror image of the previous strip. It’s a complex process of reproducing the visible strip in the reference photo and creating a mirror image of it, while maintaining a visual continuation with the following strip in the image. Parts of the image will get changed or broken down to mere pattern, for which I often source wrapping paper, op-art or wallpaper as inspiration. Work is mostly done alla prima with little or no changes or additional layers at a later stage.

Do you believe an artist should use their platform to influence society? Why?
No. It would imply that artists are somehow on a higher moral ground, or that we have the answers to society’s problems, when we do not. I have no delusions about what I do: I spend 12 to 16 hours a day making pictures, this does not qualify me to solve the world’s problems. A Contemporary artist’s job is more about asking the right questions and promoting critical thinking and triggering debate and conversation on the problems facing our civilization.
  
Do you have a favourite or most meaningful work?
There’s been many movements or phases in my work over the years and I have a favourite from each of those phases. They normally represent the moment when the series or phase reached its resolution and I started to explore new modes of expression.

What is your greatest achievement as an artist to date?
That I still love what I do! Everyday is a small victory. I’m just taking delight in every day that grants me the opportunity to live my dream.

What are your aspirations for the future?
To make my practice more sustainable by cutting down on wastage and working towards using materials that has a more ethical and environmentally friendly supply chain. Generally growing my practice and taking part in more exhibitions. I am aiming for opportunities and representation in the Northern hemisphere.