Ruben Volgers

Statement

The subjects in my works drifts between mandalas, cosmologies, ecosystems, scientific illustrations and self-portraiture.

The inspiration for the visual side of my work comes primarily from three things:

Primitive art – I'm interested in the way it's passed on, and how through this process it evolves over time. The constant sieving through the generations makes it more complex, more potent, all the while never growing decadent. In different cultures it also seems to stay true to a few favorite shared primal subjects and the use of the same powerful visual tricks.

Biology – the way nature uses many ways to influence the visual cortex of the brain. For instance: flowers, paradise birds, warning colors, the differences in male/female/juvenile coloring, contrast, patterns, etc. This is a visual language that is shared between all animals, and I think it seems foolish for any artist to ignore the natural language of the brain, while it is being fluently spoken in nature all around us.

I also like how this art in the natural world doesn't just have a function but a clear necessity. This is one of the guidelines I like to use in an age when everything can be art.

Science – the goal of science is to make things clearer, to show us the bigger picture, to change our perspective, to enlighten us, and I think in this function, it is much the same as art. This enlightment through perspective is a true form of beauty that I value very highly in art, because it seems to be the most noble of the many functions art can fulfill.

The images generated by science, for instance the design of machines, complex visualizations of mathematical constructs, illustrations of anatomy, the endless sorting and collecting of minerals, species, patterns, cultures, are all very much enjoyable in the same way as traditional art is. I try to use this same beauty in my work.