F (Between Two Ferns)
David Ostrowski's *F (Between Two Ferns)* exemplifies the German painter's signature approach to reductive, process-driven abstraction, combining oil, lacquer, and paper on canvas to create a composition that balances deliberate mark-making with studied emptiness. The work's sparse gestures and raw, unencumbered surface suggest an interrogation of painting's minimal conditions, where what is left undone feels as intentional as what is applied. The inclusion of lacquer lends a subtle sheen that contrasts with the matte vulnerability of exposed canvas and collaged paper, reinforcing Ostrowski's ongoing dialogue between control and casualness.
- Medium
- oil, lacquer, paper on canvas
- Location
- Phillips, Salt Lake City, UT
- Spotted At
- Auction House · PhillipsView on map
🔨 Auction Lot
Contemporary Art Day Sale
May 16, 2014
Artists in conversation
Raoul De Keyser
Belgian · b. 1930
De Keyser similarly pursued reductive abstraction where sparse, tentative marks coexist with vast areas of unpainted or barely touched canvas, treating emptiness as a compositional element equal in weight to applied paint.
Niele Toroni
Swiss · b. 1937
Toroni shares Ostrowski's interrogation of painting's minimal conditions, using process driven repetition and deliberate restraint to question what constitutes a painting while foregrounding the raw materiality of the support.
Sergej Jensen
Danish · b. 1973
Jensen works with similarly sparse gestural marks and unconventional materials on canvas, embracing studied emptiness and a reductive contemporary sensibility that closely mirrors the balance of action and vacancy seen in this specific work.
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