Until April 5, 2025, Bildhalle Zurich presents an exhibition by Chantal Elisabeth Ariëns entitled Where Are You with these few sentences:
Black is a deeply vibrant color, perhaps even the most vivid color of all. That is a certainty after seeing Ariëns’ work.
The nuances of black expose the layers of our perception and fan out in such diversity that they lift us.
“I felt a strong need to create something tangible with my own hands, into which I could pour my soul. So, I set out to find a craft and technique that would fulfill this desire: the photopolymer etching technique. I first transfer my image onto a solar plate, which creates a new negative. This new negative allows me to print in a traditional way. I love the texture, the smell, the countless shades of blacks, and the handcrafted process. The dedication this handmade process requires of me results in the velvety atmosphere of my work. This technic gives me the opportunity to give my images the poetic and dreamlike atmosphere. The work itself is very intense and slow; it brings me to a more quiet part of myself and makes me more aware of how gratifying craftsmanship can be. Although my images are printed in small editions, all prints are handmade and therefore unique.”
Chantal Elisabeth Ariëns is educated at The Ballet Academy in Tilburg and worked as a dancer.
Chantal Elisabeth Ariëns : Where Are You
Until April 5, 2025
Bildhalle Zurich
Stauffacherquai 56
8004, Zürich, Switzerland
www.bildhalle.ch
