Karel Stoop maakt voornamelijk abstracte schilderijen, maar ook fotografie en installaties.Hij doet dit al vanaf eind jaren zeventig en heeft sindsdien een groot aantal exposities rerealiseerd over de hele wereld. Barcelona, Madrid, Louisville /Kentucky, Jamsa/Finland, Tokyo / Japan, Aachen / Denemarken, Finland, Xiamen / China, Montreal / Canada, Berlijn en Amsterdam.
Zijn werk is beinvloed door diverse culturen ( vooral invloed uit Mediteranean en Azië) Ook grote expressionisten zoals de DeKoning en Pollock hebben een duidelijke invloed gehad op zijn werk.Hij heeft een eigen taal ontwikkeld en de kracht en autenticiteit van zijn werk zijn de belangrijkste kenmerken.
Gedurende de laatste 10 jaar het werk van Karel Stoop integreerd voornamelijk begrippen zoals “universum” en “tijd”. Ook dagelijkse elementen spelen een belangrijke rol in zijn werk.
Ondanks de filosofische inslag van zijn creaties, is zijn werk kleurvol, fris en vol expressie.
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Karel Stoop considers himself as an “explorer of life”.
During the last 30 years he made plenty of journeys, was working between
Amsterdam and Barcelona, went in the 80th on a small motorbike from The Netherlands to Spain, did photography, designed fashion, did video, installation work and above all painting.
About his painting:
Though Karel Stoop started painting when he was 16, we may consider that he
got seriously involved during the end of the 70’s. He made expressionistic abstract colourful shapes in that period expressing basically wildness , joy and a profound sense for composition. The expression with paint converted in extensive mixed media integrating objects and materials as wax, varnish and any other material that could be useful in the expression of sense. He even used phone books, chairs, stones and dried cow shit he found in the Pyrenees.
The use of objects converted in sculptures and installations. He described this process as
his fight with the chaos and the need to dominate this and give it form. He called his
works “cosmic reflexions”, which opened a new period with marvellous paintingsall related with the universe. “life and cosmos”, “Cosmic sketches”, “Universe and Civilisation” .
After this period with rather dark and black works, he became aware of his lonelinessin the universe and felt guilty for dreaming away from “reality”. From here came his serial “I was not here” painted in a sensitive and colourful way, though using basicallywhite and avoiding screaming colours. He still was using objects as well, but in a more affective way. He integrated attention for everyday life that had becomean unavoidable fact. He made works like “I need some socks” or “Not chicken again”.Also human beings, animals , fruits and other elements of life started to form part of his compositions.
Together with the development of his digital abilities he got the need to centre morein the meaning he wanted to express than in the material. This made that he returned to the use of oil painting combined with digital created images. He re-valued again the force and brightness of oil colours above the use of pigments and he lost the taboo using figurative forms. He forced himself even not being scared using fancy forms or symbols breaking them completely out of their collective context.
From here came his serial: “Heart”, “Crocodiles and heart”, “Identity”, “Hidden cats” “Seafruit”
In spite of this, Karel Stoop recently had to return to the abstraction again. It is the universe where he feels most home. Not for avoiding reality, but as he says “because the abstraction is the reality in a more complex and multi-sense way.”
His works speak for it self. They are so free and full of reality insinuations that any recognizable object is getting something claustrophobic.
Where will the painterly journey of Karel Stoop bring us next ?
Karel Stoop founded the groupment International Art Collective in 1993 . He worked as an art curator and gallery director during many years .
His works has been exhibited in Spain, UK, The Netherlands, USA, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Japan and China.