2009 IB HL Visual Art Exhibition: Lukas Schlicht

I have always understood art as a means to link past and present. It is a carrier of culture, representing the change in values that a society undergoes through the course of time.
My personal approach to art shows awareness and appreciation of this notion. I have chosen to broach topics that have already concerned the ancient Latin poets or the German writers during the Sturm und Drang period.

I am fascinated by the timelessness that inhere these themes. Although centuries have gone by since legends like “Icarus” or novels like “The Sorrows of Young Werther” have been written, their content is still completely up to date and an inspiration to the contemporary world.
Using modern imagery, I have re-interpreted the old tales and stories and applied them to experiences that I have made personally.

The choice of topic that I base my art upon resembles the work of Cy Twombly, who also integrated classical mythological themes in his work. However, the complete abstraction that characterizes his work does not appeal to me. My work is more figurative. Over the two year course, the shape of the human body has become increasingly important to me. Therefore, I have orientated myself to Egon Schiele’s work. His portraits and nudes have strongly influenced my way of representing the body.

My eagerness to experiment with new media was an extension and a restriction at the same time. On one hand, the diversity of media used certainly broadened my artistic perspective, on the other hand, it restrained me from uniting my pieces in a discernible, original fashion.

The most important lesson that the IB art programme has taught me concerns my artistic efficiency. Having to meet deadlines, I have learned to limit my muse and produce art in a less time consuming fashion.