< Florian Schmidt: pan shot 

“If the postmodernism of the 80s was right in that all new art also reminds of old art, then the converse argument would be that past art is only perceivable as such if it appears through new art.“

Florian Schmidt creates paintings out of wood, cardboard, canvas and colors that are actually objects. Some
are roughly assembled with staples, others radiate with classic elegance. Similar principles hold true for the
objects, which are like drawings petrified to sculptures. Both are based on an open, playful system, in which
that which is left out seems as important as that which is present, set by the artist. He consciously and virtuosicly utilizes the picture language of the Russian avantgarde, the De Stijl, perhaps also elements of Zero. Therefore it is not surprizing that when observing the works, an echo of past names, places, manifests and artworks is perceptible.

At Åplus, he reduces his exibition to two large-sized paintings. The surfaces of both are compounded by
different geometrically cut boards and both are restrained in their colors.

The two works act as a bracket in the exibition room and point to an empty center.The empty space between the two paintings is taken up by the viewer, who activates the paintings analogous to the movement of a pendulum.

Patrick Huber