Slawomir Elsner

Slawomir Elsner, a contemporary Polish artist, is renowned for his emotionally evocative and hyper-realistic yet distorted paintings that challenge viewers' perceptions and ignite the imagination.

Slawomir Elsner's Biography

Slawomir Elsner was born in Wodzislaw, Upper Silesia, Poland, in 1976 and moved to Germany with his parents in the mid-eighties. He studied Fine Arts at the esteemed Kunsthochschule Kassel from 1995 to 2002. In 2001, he was a Meisterschüler of Prof. Norbert Radermacher.

Elsner has extensively exhibited his work across Europe, gaining recognition from numerous museums and galleries. His remarkable creations are featured in major German institutions and collections, including those in Munich, Dresden, Bremen, Witten, Stuttgart, and Frankfurt am Main.

His solo shows include "Self-Portrait as a Painter" at Galerie Rüdiger Schöttle in Munich (2023), "Geraubte Küsse" at Lullin + Ferrari in Zurich (2023), "Musèe Imaginaire" (with Uwe Wittwer & Michael Van Ofen) at Monica de Cardenas in Zuoz (2023), "The Vision of Memory" at Lullin + Ferrari in Zurich (2020), "Slawomir Elsner: Das Bischofsporträt" at Dreikönigskirche in Dresden (2018), and many more.

Additionally, Elsner's works have been featured in numerous group exhibitions held at various galleries and museums worldwide, including Kunstforum Ostdeutsche Galerie in Regensburg, Lullin + Ferrari in Zurich, Centrum Sztuki Wspólczesnej in Torún, Galerie Coucou in Kassel, Galerie Gebr. Lehmann in Dresden, among others. 

 Currently, the artist lives in Berlin, where he continues to work.

Slawomir Elsner's Art Style

Elsner's art presents a compelling interplay between the familiar and the mysterious. His artistic process subtly distorts reality, creating an unsettling atmosphere and a layered narrative that prompts viewers to question their own assumptions and delve deeper into his compositions.

While Elsner's works are neither conceptual nor abstract, he masterfully engages with viewers' expectations and visual habits through his figurative paintings, often inspired by photographic references. This approach invites the audience to look beyond the surface and tap into their imagination.

Elsner's practice primarily focuses on works on paper, watercolors, and crayon drawings. His series-based approach and innovative techniques challenge traditional notions of drawing by exploring new territories of color, composition, and spatial representation. Instead of using the traditional single-line approach to define volume, the artist outlines the pictorial space with hundreds of straight-line bundles.