Nel Art Gallery Opens a New Exhibition by Dave Robertson
Nel Art Gallery is getting ready for the upcoming summer season in the African continent by opening a new solo exhibition by Dave Robertson, titled Glimmers. Opened on November 6, the art show runs through November 29, inviting Cape Town’s residents and visitors to get acquainted with the art of the talented South African artist.
Dave Robertson’s Artistic Approach
Dave Robertson specializes in abstract painting and photography, with a delicate and empathetic visual style. The artist describes his painting technique as a fusion of science and spirituality, focusing on the creative reinterpretation of human fears and limiting conventions. Robertson’s ultimate goal is to remind people of their divine nature and nurture the feelings of altruism and gratitude among his audiences.
The artist characterizes his creative process as an iterative one, with repeated cycles of painting and reacting to what has already been painted. This way, Robertson experiments with different levels of confidence and uncertainty to render presence and energy with visual means.
Highlights of the Solo Exhibition by Dave Robertson
The solo exhibition by Dave Robertson, titled Glimmers, is a series of works composed of the remnants of materials used in the creation of larger paintings in the artist’s studio. They represent small mixed-media art objects made of corrugated card and plywood pieces, transformed into deeply symbolic abstract art with a combination of mark-making techniques and mediums. Robinson employed ink, acrylic, oil pastels, and permanent markers to bring his creative ideas to life and merge the creative debris into abstract visual diaries.
The exhibition’s title – Glimmers – serves its content and purpose by referring viewers to graceful, positive moments of peace and connection that one can encounter accidentally in everyday life. Glimmers aid nervous system regulation and give a sense of inner peace, with more of them recognized in routine interactions and experiences with purposeful brain training. Similar to the gradual recognition of small positives, Robertson shares his spiritual journey of transforming the regular and even the unneeded into a work of art.
A notable part of Glimmers, presented at Nel Art Gallery, is a series of Dave Robertson’s over-painted photographs, titled Transitions. These photographs are a distinct aspect of the artist’s creative portfolio, communicating his interpretation of visual imperfections and views about parallel realities. The series was inspired by Gerhard Richter’s over-painted photo art of the 1980s, blending the original truthful photo image with the artist’s subjective experience of the captured moment.