We are pleased to announce the exhibition, Fusuma, with recent works by Olav Christopher Jenssen, his 19th with the gallery, since the first in 1985.

Jenssen’s recent series of paintings, Another Pale Afternoon, is comprised of several large scale vertical canvases and approximately 25 medium-sized paintings executed in an elongated horizontal “marine style” format, which is new in the context of his production:

In Olav Christopher Jenssen’s richly varied series of paintings, Another Pale Afternoon, the brushstrokes vibrate, lurch, scratch, efface and meander across the canvas – pulsing and flowing with varying intensity – without, apparently, striving toward a formal stabilization. The gestures, thereby, maintain their compositional autonomy and inherent energy. Never conforming to a preconceived plan, the irregular, scarcely penetrable web of color formulates a process of action and reaction; and the compact rectangular format provides the formal counterweight to the lively interior worlds that Jenssen creates on the canvas. He seems to strive toward the greatest degree of compositional richness.*

The exhibition will feature a selection of these paintings from the last year, as well as a series of watercolors from Jenssens’ ongoing Journal project; a collection of small works executed in various media, on the same size paper, since 1986. All of the works in this series are dated September 29th, 2021, and made with a limited palette of earthy colors – blacks, browns and plum – constituting a whimsical allegory of shapes and figures from an adventurous, imaginary world.

Further, the gallery is pleased to present 12 new photogravure and aquatint prints. Titled Vinje, they are derived from Jenssens’ illustrations for a forthcoming three-volume German publication of the Norwegian author Tarjej Vesaas’ (1897-1970) poetry and short stories. The books were designed by Jenssen, and will be published by BuchKunst Kleinheindrich in Münster. In connection, we are presenting the first iteration from a new series of larger sculptures in lacquered aluminum, which embodies the figurative imagery that can be found in the prints.

The gallery will do a special presentation of the Tarjej Vesaas’ books on Saturday, October 8, from 12-3 pm. The artist will be present.

During the course of the exhibition, Galleri Riis will publish the artist book Another Pale Afternoon; a survey of the medium-sized paintings from the eponymous series, with an essay by German writer Christoph Schreier.

*Excerpt from the essay Another Pale Afternoon, Christoph Schreier, 2022.