Raoul De Keyser: Come on, play it again
Text by Hans Rudolf Reust
This fully illustrated catalogue was published on the occasion of Raoul De Keyser’s first solo exhibition at David Zwirner in 2001, which presented a ten-part series of paintings. Each work in the series follows a different compositional logic and relies on an economical use of biomorphic and geometric forms, squares, lines, and dots. The title of the series Come on, play it again carries musical connotations, as if encouraging an improvisational jazz pianist while simultaneously suggesting the possibility of infinite variation. Also included is a text by critic Hans Rudolf Reust.
Publisher: David Zwirner
Artists: Raoul De Keyser
Contributors: Hans Rudolf Reust
Designer: Matthew Polhamus
Printer: Verdographics, BVBA
Publication Date: 2001
Binding: Softcover
Dimensions: 8 1/4 x 9 in (21 x 22.9 cm)
Pages: 30
Reproductions: 10 color
ISBN: NoISBN
Retail: $25 US & Canada | £16 | €20
Status: Available
Raoul De Keyser
For nearly fifty years, Raoul De Keyser (1930-2012) created subtly evocative paintings and works on paper which appear at once straightforward and cryptic, abstract and figurative. Composed of basic but indefinable shapes and marks, his works often invoke spatial and figural illusions, though they remain elusive of any descriptive narrative. Despite—or precisely because of—their sparse gesturing, De Keyser’s works convey a grandeur that inspires prolonged contemplation. Individually as well as collectively, his works revolve around the activity of painting, but also move beyond its physical means to become more than the sum of their parts. Their apparent simplicity belies a lengthy gestation period, which is guided largely by intuition, rather than by following a pre-existing plan.