Adam Saks
Encyclopedia
Adam Saks is a Danish
painter
. He lives and works in Berlin
, Germany
.
He is inspired by the French Foreign Legion
with its colonial history, solitude and aggression. In his paperworks Adam Saks draws his inspiration from seafarer's or criminal tattoo
s, which emerges as traces of a human presence and is combined with fragments of landscapes, interiors and stories from exotic regions.
Adam Saks has created several artist books with Schaefer Grafisk Vaerksted, Copenhagen. Among them Deep Drawings (2004), Raid (2004) and Fill Your Hands (2007) are made in the monochrome technique of direct transfer in a limited edition of 250 copies each. Elephant Island (2009) is a faksimile of a large ink drawing which – like James Joyce
's ulyssian
stream of consciousness – waves and weaves itself as well as a massive array of motifal flotsam throughout the whole 29,7 × 630 cm long span of the book rawly bound as Japanese paperback.
Adam Saks has had numerous solo exhibitions, e.g., Sønderjyllands Kunstmuseum (Denmark, 2003), Århus Kunstbygning, Center of Contemporary Art (Denmark, 2007), Lieu D´art Contemporain in Narbonne (France, 2008), the Nordiska Akvarellmuseet (Sweden, 2009) and the ARoS – Aarhus Kunstmuseum (Denmark, 2010).
Adam Saks is represented amongst the following public collections: Malmø Kunstmuseum (Sweden), Statens Museum for Kunst (Denmark), Sønderjyllands Kunstmuseum (Denmark), Lieu D´ Art Contemporain (France), Nordiska Akvarellmuseet (Sweden) and ARoS – Aarhus Kunstmuseum (Denmark).
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
painter
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
. He lives and works in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
Biography
Adam Saks studied at the Royal Academy of Fine Art in Copenhagen from 1993–1999. In 1996–1997 he studied under Professor Bernd Koberling at the Hochschule der Künste in Berlin.He is inspired by the French Foreign Legion
French Foreign Legion
The French Foreign Legion is a unique military service wing of the French Army established in 1831. The foreign legion was exclusively created for foreign nationals willing to serve in the French Armed Forces...
with its colonial history, solitude and aggression. In his paperworks Adam Saks draws his inspiration from seafarer's or criminal tattoo
Criminal tattoo
Tattoos are commonly used among criminals to show gang membership and record the wearer's personal history—such as his or her skills, specialties, accomplishments and convictions. They are also used as a means of personal expression. Certain designs have developed recognized coded meanings...
s, which emerges as traces of a human presence and is combined with fragments of landscapes, interiors and stories from exotic regions.
Adam Saks has created several artist books with Schaefer Grafisk Vaerksted, Copenhagen. Among them Deep Drawings (2004), Raid (2004) and Fill Your Hands (2007) are made in the monochrome technique of direct transfer in a limited edition of 250 copies each. Elephant Island (2009) is a faksimile of a large ink drawing which – like James Joyce
James Joyce
James Augustine Aloysius Joyce was an Irish novelist and poet, considered to be one of the most influential writers in the modernist avant-garde of the early 20th century...
's ulyssian
Ulysses (novel)
Ulysses is a novel by the Irish author James Joyce. It was first serialised in parts in the American journal The Little Review from March 1918 to December 1920, and then published in its entirety by Sylvia Beach on 2 February 1922, in Paris. One of the most important works of Modernist literature,...
stream of consciousness – waves and weaves itself as well as a massive array of motifal flotsam throughout the whole 29,7 × 630 cm long span of the book rawly bound as Japanese paperback.
Adam Saks has had numerous solo exhibitions, e.g., Sønderjyllands Kunstmuseum (Denmark, 2003), Århus Kunstbygning, Center of Contemporary Art (Denmark, 2007), Lieu D´art Contemporain in Narbonne (France, 2008), the Nordiska Akvarellmuseet (Sweden, 2009) and the ARoS – Aarhus Kunstmuseum (Denmark, 2010).
Adam Saks is represented amongst the following public collections: Malmø Kunstmuseum (Sweden), Statens Museum for Kunst (Denmark), Sønderjyllands Kunstmuseum (Denmark), Lieu D´ Art Contemporain (France), Nordiska Akvarellmuseet (Sweden) and ARoS – Aarhus Kunstmuseum (Denmark).
Biennales & Triennials (selection)
- 2010 False Recognition, 14th Vilnius Painting Triennial, Vilnius, Lithuania
Exhibitions (selection)
- 2011 Follow You Follow Me, Bourouina Gallery, Berlin, Germany
- 2010 Visual Voodoo, ARoS – Aarhus Kunstmuseum, Aarhus, Denmark
- 2010 Dry your Eyes, Galleri Christoffer Egelund, Copenhagen, Denmark
- 2009 Mexican Standoff, Schaefer Grafisk Vaerksted, Copenhagen, Denmark
- 2009 Lone Star, Nordiska Akvarellmuseet, Skärhamn, Sweden
- 2009 Sacré Nom de Dieu, Bourouina Gallery, Berlin, Germany
- 2008 Teaching the Snake to Paint, Galleri Veggerby, Copenhagen, Denmark
- 2008 Victime de sa Force, L.A.C, Narbonne, France
- 2007 Pazi Snajper, Galerie Kapinos, Berlin, Germany
- 2006 Transgressor, Aarhus Kunstbygning, Aarhus, Denmark
- 2006 Marion, Nur Für Dich, Schaefer Grafisk Vaerksted, Copenhagen, Denmark
- 2006 Transgressor, Galleri Veggerby, Copenhagen, Denmark
- 2005 Fatalité, Vikingsberg Kunsthal, Helsingborg, Sweden
- 2003 Machete, Sønderjyllands Kunstmuseum, Tønder, Denmark
Group Exhibitions (selection)
- 2010 Bushwick Schlacht!, Fortress to Solitude, New York, U.S.A.
- 2010 Crefelder Gesellschaft für Venezianische Malerei, Galerie Börgmann, Krefeld, Germany
- 2010 New Impressions, Bourouina Gallery, Berlin, Germany
- 2009 George says, No Martini, no Party! (Taken for Stranger Special), Appartement, Berlin, Germany
Publications (selection)
- Follow You Follow Me, catalogue edited by Bourouina Gallery, Interview with Adam Saks by David Ulrichs, Berlin, 2011
- Night Stalker, artist book, edited by Dorothee Heine and Christian Malycha, Q1, Berlin, 2011
- Nausikaa, catalogue edited by Dorothee Heine and Christian Malycha, Q.H.S.O.I.Q.O.C.M.S. 4, Berlin 2010
- Visual Voodoo, catalogue edited by ARoS - Aarhus Kunstmuseum, Texts by Marie Nipper and Jens Erik Sørensen, Aarhus 2010
- Dry your Eyes, catalogue edited by Galleri Christoffer Egelund, Text by Tine Nygaard, Copenhagen 2010
- Elephant Island, artist book, Schäfer Grafisk Værksted, Text by Christian Malycha, Kerber Verlag, Bielefeld 2009
- Sea Level – Sailors and Prisoners. Coloured Pencil Drawings, edited by Josef Kleinheinrich, Text by Kay Heymer, Buchkunst Kleinheinrich, Münster 2009
- Lonestar, catalogue edited by the Nordiska Akvarellmuseet, Texts by Bernd Koberling, Bera Nordal and Björn Springfeldt, Skärhamn, 2009
- Sacré Nom de Dieu!, catalogue edited by Bourouina Gallery, Text by Christian Malycha, Berlin, 2009
- Victime de Sa Force, catalogue edited by Lieu D´art Contemporain, Text by Thorsten Sadowsky, Narbonne 2008
- Fill Your Hands, artist book, Schäfer Grafisk Værksted, Copenhagen 2007
- Transgressor, catalogue edited by Galleri Veggerby, Copenhagen 2006
- Raid, artist book, Schäfer Grafisk Værksted, Copenhagen 2005
- Re-Raid, artist book, Schäfer Grafisk Værksted, Copenhagen 2005
- Fatalité, catalogue edited by Vikingsberg Kunsthal, Text by Björn Springfeldt, Helsingborg 2005
- Deep Drawings, artist book, Schäfer Grafisk Værksted, Copenhagen 2004
- Machete, catalogue edited by Sønderjyllands Kunstmuseum, Text by Thorsten Sadowsky, Tønder 2003