Sybren Renema was born in Dordrecht, the Netherlands, in 1988. He currently lives and works in Glasgow, Scotland.
Artists’ statement
My work originates from my various academic interests, which cover subjects including geosciences, history, philosophy and music. Although these interests might seem disparate, they are connected through my particular interest in the long 19th century (1789-1914). Past projects have interrogated the legacy of Goethe and his pseudo-scientific Farbenlehre, the drug use of the English Romantic poets, the polar expeditions of Scott and Shackleton, David Livingstone’s afterlife in Africa and the ideologies behind classical music. My projects interrogate how concepts emanating from this period are also relevant in our own era. I believe that in these fast-changing times, such an approach to the world is relevant, as it helps us understand the slow-moving and long-term influences that shaped our contemporary intellectual discourse.
Presently, I am engaged in developing a new body of work dedicated to deep time, based on the method of creating ceramics glaze out of rocks.
A CV can be downloaded here.