Erlend Loe by Tom Gundersen

Artist: Tom Gundersen

Technique: Graphics, palimpsest, mixed media

Motif: 40 x 30 cm

Sheet: 53 x 40 cm

Circulation: Max 20, variant

Price including 5% art tax to Bildene Kunstneres Hjelpefond

I have chosen the concept of palimpsest as the governing metaphor. Partly as an expression of a conscious exchange with art/portrait history. By starting from earlier images, one brings with them some of their original meanings. New meanings can be woven together with the older ones, and the "dissonance" between them can produce distinctive results. More concretely, the term palimpsest can also be used for a specific printing practice. Through many years of studying the history of portraiture, I have prepared an archive of printing plates with references to and quotations from this history. From this archive of over 200 plates (mostly lino and woodcuts), I can choose motifs that are printed in layers under my current portrait.

Source: Artists' Association