Pieter Schoolwerth's 'Model as Painting' Exhibition at Miguel Abreu Gallery Explores Digital Abstraction

The exhibition 'Model as Painting' by Pieter Schoolwerth was held at Miguel Abreu Gallery in New York from 21 May to 30 June. This showcase included artworks inspired by Yve-Alain Bois's 1990 publication 'Painting as Model'. Schoolwerth's creations—paintings, sculptures, and collages—delve into abstraction within a digital context, portraying generic nonplaces characterized by blank silhouettes. His artistic method encompasses photographs of shadows, drawings, photocollages, and foamcore models, which he photographs, digitally manipulates, prints, and then overpaints. He also produces wood reliefs using a router. Notable pieces include 'Break Up #5' (2017) and 'Student Center #1' (2017), which illustrate fragmented social interactions. Additionally, the exhibition presented an installation inspired by 'The Casting Agent' (2017), a film featuring animated shadows, which was reviewed in ArtReview's September 2017 issue.