Volker Hermes

1 Aug

Hidden van Ravesteyn, Photocollage, 2017

“I reshape individual areas of the painting, adding no external elements. I pay attention to the brushstrokes and lighting as well as the particular characteristics of the artist’s work.”

“Many years ago I worked at a workshop for historical opera and theatre costumes, named das gewand.”

“My work is a reflection on the functions of art, not on particular people.”

“Here in the city, there are many messages and little chalk drawings on the sidewalks, as messages for neighbours, birthday greetings, little things to cheer up people who see this from their windows and balconies.”

“It’s all about travelling – my theme is the Grand Tour and the much-travelled artists of the 18th century.”

Volker Hermes

Mask-querade

Volker Hermes has recently received a lot of attention internationally on social media – in particular his series Hidden Portraits. Long before it became practical, and indeed, fashionable to cover part of our faces with a mask, Hermes played with the idea of covering the faces of the rich and famous as portrayed by the Old Masters. The artists, based in a somewhat unassuming yet culturally diverse city in the German mid-West – Düsseldorf – enlightened us at The Protagonist in a conversation about his portraits, patrons, status and art. Subverting existing meaning, Hermes displays a very liberal approach to leaving the viewer in charge of interpretation for most part, not only sparking our imagination but creating an active, multi-layered dialogue between the original artist, himself, the sitter, and the spectator.

When did you start producing artworks professionally?

Even if it was not quite so professional at that time, I would say when I started studying at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf in 1995.

Have you always wanted to be an artist? What is your earliest memory of creating?

I wanted to become an archaeologist for half of my youth, but that changed at some point. The interest in a historical context has remained.

Tell us about your philosophy as an artist. What do you want to achieve through your visual pieces?

I think a lot about painting in general, how it works, what it means, what magic it has. And I express myself through art. I show the resulting works, make my thoughts visible and just see how people react.

You use and transform existing artwork, how do you choose your pieces?

I search through archives and collections of museums and intuitively find the works. Sometimes I am interested in a certain period of time, sometimes in particular works by certain artists, I find the paintings and the paintings find me!

What are your methods of manipulating (technical and otherwise)?

I execute my interventions using Photoshop. I self-taught the programme and I think sometimes I choose crazy ways to achieve certain things – seen from a purely technical perspective. I reshape individual areas of the painting, adding no external elements. I pay attention to the brushstrokes and lighting as well as the particular characteristics of the artist’s work. The result should be comprehensible with the work, I do not want to destroy the dignity and spirit of the historical works. I just want to give them a contemporary twist in terms of content and form.

Your ongoing series "Hidden Portraits" has come to much attention recently. When you first started with this, what was your inspiration?

I started doing this already 10 years ago! But I hadn't shown it to anyone for years. It was more of a private pleasure. It was my way of thinking about the social and societal meaning of portraits, of covering the protagonists with their clothes, which are so important to them because they express their status. It was not until 2015 that I published some of them for the first time.

Tell us about your favourite pieces in the series.

Oh, I love them all!

How much do you know about the history of dress? You have also focused on ruffs - do you think ruffs, collars and elaborate headgear are particularly interesting accessories/parts of dress?

Many years ago I worked at a workshop for historical opera and theatre costumes, named das gewand.

There, they make the most wonderful costumes for theatres all over the world. From my point of view, they simply know everything about historical clothing and I absorbed knowledge like a sponge – and I still direct my questions to the workshop today in some cases.

At a certain time in Holland, collars were the only way to make your wealth visible. Otherwise, only plain black dresses were allowed. That's why there were these huge collars; the richer, the bigger. I just make them a little bit bigger, and the individuality drowns in it. That's just an example. At another time hats were the poshest accessories. Every era has its en vogue pieces.

How do you dress yourself? Do you wear masks at the moment due to the virus - if so, what styles are you going for?

I only wear black myself. Years ago, I radically simplified my clothing. One trouser model, two types of shirts, both of which I own several. One summer edition, one winter edition. I always look the same, whether in the studio or at a wedding. But of course, the current “trend-accessoire” is a simple black mask.

Do you ever imagine your work's characters telling stories? How do you think these stories might change through the way you manipulate portraits? (If we think of these characters as having a voice, feeling, seeing, talking...)

I have to admit that I think little about what the painted people would "think" about my disguise, but rather about the painters who painted these portraits. That's why my work is always called: "Hidden” – and then the name of the artist. My work is a reflection on the functions of art, not on particular people. But of course, I must say that I play a bit with the expressions of the protagonists... the rest is up to the viewer.

What are other favourite artworks of yours?

Oh, I love so many paintings. Not important for the Hidden portraits - but even more important for me as an artist is the self–portrait with fur by Albrecht Dürer, which is displayed in Munich.

Your ongoing Hidden Portrait series is just one of many of your creative outputs. What other works would you say are typical for you as an artist?

Yes, I am indeed a painter and I still paint and draw a lot. Even if at the moment, the Hidden Portraits are more in focus. I work in large series and themes. They all revolve – just like the photographic works – around questions that arise when you think about painting. How does three-dimensionality work on the two-dimensional surface of the canvas, what did the seapieces mean for people and artists, and what is my position as a contemporary artist on these phenomena. It is perhaps typical for me that I develop a new form of painting, new techniques and formal aspects for each theme I choose. It is a long process each time. That's why my works from different years look very different, which I think is necessary and good.

What are your favourite museums?

Give me a great painting in a room and I love it. Museum, villa, apartment, shed... I just can't give a ranking there.

How does social media change the way we look at art? (if we think of dimensions we see in museums versus dimensions on screen for instance)

I'm old-fashioned. Nothing beats the real encounter with art. However, the access to art via social media is somehow easier, without big hurdles. But also, faster and sometimes more superficial… but I'm only talking about the somehow “classic” forms of art like paintings, sculptures or installations.

Entirely new art forms have developed that make use of the techniques and functions of the virtual and for which computer transmission is the perfect medium. In the end I think it's wonderful that access to the classical formats has become easier, that images are shared, loved and then at some point viewed in reality.

Do you think that global lockdown during the corona crisis has had a big effect on how we perceive visual culture?

Today you notice that the consumption of culture was somehow taken for granted, now that it is no longer so. Perhaps we are learning to appreciate many things again. Among other things, that artists are more than service providers for events or clowns for an elite. Because everyone has seen that even in a lockdown, under the most difficult circumstances, artists have done what they always did. Create art!

Do you believe we will consume visual culture in different ways in the near future due to the way the crisis has affected us?

Probably a lot of things will change. I don't think it's possible to say anything more specific at this point. Some will no longer exist, because the crisis has destroyed small niches. Others will emerge anew because forms of reception have changed and new possibilities have arisen. Maybe - after all this time at home and in front of the computer screen - you will suddenly stand in front of a painting and finally smell it, and not only see it. I am curious.

What have been the most creative outlets for you during the crisis?

Here in the city, there are many messages and little chalk drawings on the sidewalks, as messages for neighbours, birthday greetings, little things to cheer up people who see this from their windows and balconies. It is very touching, very direct.

Due to the crisis, private funding for artists and art institutions might become ever more important. Do you have any thoughts on the way private funding and patrons might operate during times of financial and societal crises?

If you have an extra patron, please give him my contact! But joking aside, my Hidden Portraits evolve around the thought that great art was created by private commissions, but that art had to fulfill the need for representation of the clients. It is a narrow path between supporting art and blackmailing art. I am involved too little in these circles of private funding to be able to draw an exact picture, but I would be curious to learn more about it.

Are you from Düsseldorf or just based there at the moment? What do you think is particular about this highly populated area in Germany and does this reflect in your work somehow?

I grew up in the countryside not far from Düsseldorf and have been living here for 28 years now. Gosh, what a long time. Düsseldorf itself has a very pleasant size, I like this city very much. There is a lively art scene and you can live very well here. In fact, we are surrounded by many other cities here, all of which have a different character. They all have very local, intimate formats that always seem new to someone who lives only 50 kilometers away. This mixture of different sceneries and people is wonderful. And more than that, Amsterdam is only two hours away by train, it is easy to get to Paris, Brussels, Antwerp. So, there is the local rootedness with the openness of internationality. Maybe this openness of thought and content on a solid foundation can also be found in my work, but it's probably not for me to judge.

You have also recently presented an exhibition opening. Tell us a little more about this.

During the Corona crisis all museums and galleries were closed and are only now slowly opening again. I'm currently showing some of my works to a group show at Kunsthaus NRW Kornelimünster called "you are here." It's all about travelling – my theme is the Grand Tour and the much-travelled artists of the 18th century. It is all the more regrettable and somehow ironic that we were not able to travel to the opening, but celebrated the start of the exhibition with a virtual opening. Now, luckily the visitors can see our works live again.

What future projects are on the horizon for you?

Exhibition planning is very difficult at the moment, because nobody can estimate exactly how we can move through the world in the near future – and if at all. Many things have been cancelled, which is terrible for an artist. But there are plans for an exhibition in Italy and other places. The future will have to show how this will really work out, but I remain optimistic!

Thank you!