David Czupryn
Born 1983 in Duisburg, Germany
© Photo from the artist's archive

In his surrealist paintings, Germany artist David Czupryn creates fantastic worlds, inhabited by humanoid hybrids; built with materials found at the intersection between nature, man-made polymers and imagination. His practice is influenced by a research of the uncanny and conducted from a ‘visceral’ perspective. His technique is seamless: the ‘layer method’ employed by Czupryn is very meticulous and the brushstrokes are near invisible. Indeed, the surface of the painting is very flat; while also conveying a sense of deepness and richness of the materials depicted.

What should I say? "On Thursday evening, March 12th, my exhibition opened in the Solingen Art Museum. The mood; eerie. The museum was closed a day later, on Friday; it became a ghost exhibition. In the following week, I was supposed to finish the exhibition catalog. I had planned to travel through Europe for the next few months right after. For more than three years, I committed to traveling to Europe only by train. An uncertain break. After more than three years of almost non-stop studio work, I didn't want a deadline, at least until the end of the year. I wanted to discover art and works of art in various parts of Europe: the monastery in Ettal, the Isenheim altar, the Palais Idéal by Ferdinand Cheval, the caves of Lascaux and more. Gather new impressions, review Europe's history and get to know it differently. Sadly, Europe became an epicenter of a new global pandemic. A week later, the museums, concert halls, etcetera, were closed. Public life was largely paralyzed. I decided to cancel my trip, move in with my parents and to be quarantine with them; as they both belong to the high-risk group for several reasons. Friends from northern Italy have shown me on phone calls how severe the effects of the virus have been there. Luckily, my family understood that straight away; as did my friends, and know I can't return home for a few weeks. Now, I sit in isolation with my parents while taking care of them. I adapt by setting up a drawing table on their balcony\study in the apartment. I found luck in misfortune. Instead of traveling through Europe, I'm with my parents for an undefined time."

David Czupryn
Duisburg, Germany. April 6, 2020

Cupreous sheet bird (2020)

190 x 130 cm, oil on canvas

Best friend (2020)

240 x 180 cm, oil on canvas

Gamechanger (2019)

170 x 140 cm, oil on canvas

Pusher (2019)

170 x 130 cm, oil on canvas

There is nothing left, there is nothing right (2019)

200 x 250 cm, oil on canvas