EIKE ERZMONEIT

    It was boredom that made me start to paint. I was playing drums in a professional rock band in England, around 1974, I had a lot of spare time, which was something new to me, so I tried my hand at painting and liked it. I had discovered a talent I didn't know I had.

    Some years previously, I had discovered, by accident, artists like Magritte, Escher and Dali, so when later I tried painting, I automatically headed in that direction.

    Being self taught, my first paintings were crude, but they slowly improved. What fascinated me most was the fact that I could create original images with just a brush and some paint. I was curious now and realised that I was able to conjure up imaginary worlds and dimensions. This I have been doing ever since.

    I had my first exhibition in 1976, in the Europa Center, Berlin, and since then have exhibited in many places around the world.

    I became a member of the Society for Art of Imagination in 1999.

For me it is quite impossible to explain how my paintings develop, but perhaps it's a bit like composing with images instead of musical notes and when I'm finally satisfied with the "melody", I paint it. The subconscious plays a big part, of that I'm sure. I am sometimes surprised to find great philosophical depths in a finished work, that I wasn't conscious of when painting. However, the interpretation of my paintings I see as the responsibility of the viewer.

    At the time I started to paint, I was also restoring an old english limousine from the 1940s and looking for two small wooden oval picture frames for the interior. I couldn't find anything suitable, so I made them myself and realised that I could make frames in any shape. Today, not only are the paintings my own work, but so are the frames.

Eike Erzmoneit, Germany / UK
http://www.eikeerzmoneit.co.uk/