Galerie Marguo is pleased to present an exhibition of new paintings by Iceland-based artist Steingrímur Gauti. On view from 12 January to 17 February 2024, this marks the artist’s second solo exhibition at the gallery.
There is a Zen proverb that states, “Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.” The meaning: all begins and ends with work. The sacred, or spiritually elevated, does not surpass the profane but is rather found within its crevices. Steingrímur Gauti’s expansive abstractions, which oscillate through scales of agitation and serenity, manifest this philosophy. They become sites of the “delicate dance between embracing the ego's constructive aspects and recognizing its potential pitfalls”, and reflect the artist’s ongoing negotiation with the paradoxical dialectic of freedom and rigorous discipline.