Emerging Artist Hamburg 2024: Darko Caramello Nikolic

Initiated in 2012 by Fair Director Oliver Lähndorf, the annual Emerging Artist exhibition at Affordable Art Fair Hamburg has given a curated platform to new talents who haven’t been represented by a gallery at the time. Most of them have been recent graduates from the HFBK Hamburg.

Looking back at the last 12 years, the visibility generated by the Emerging Artist exhibitions has been integral in supporting and pushing artist’s careers within the difficult conditions of the art world.

Emerging Artists 2024: Darko C. Nikolic

This year, the Hamburg-based artist Darko C. Nikolic will be represented with a solo exhibition. On display is an excerpt from his work cycle “Archetypes of Concrete Art”, which, following in the footsteps of the constructivists, deals with form and color effects in 36 large-format paintings. The exhibition will be curated by Fair Manager Hannah Weber-Heidenfels.

Read the full interview with Darko C. Nikolic

Darko C. Nikolic

What’s special about Darko C. Nikolic’s practice is his continuous cycle of research and composition, which uncovers new interplays of forms and colors that are then incorporated into new works. His sculptures, installations, and paintings reflect his interest in structure and rhythm. He considers the immediate perception of color and form as an essential element of his art. The works have been exhibited worldwide in museums and galleries, including the Deji Art Museum in Nanjing, China, which earned him international recognition.

‘Archetypes of Concrete Art’

In a production period of over four years, the artist Darko C. Nikolic has created a cycle of 36 large-format paintings in which he investigates the effects of form and color based on the model of constructivist painting.

‘Archetypes of Concrete Art’ deals specifically with the optical and, secondarily, emotional effects that are focused on by color and form. Intended as a study object for a broad audience, this work is not for sale in individual parts, but is created as a complete work to be shown in public places.

In this series, Nikolic specifically deals with art-historically established, fundamental form and color systems in order to study their respective effects, both individually and in interaction with one another. This impressive work of art is unique in its methodological consistency and opens up a complex system of comparison.

Nikolic’s works thus turn the exhibition space into a place of exploration and self-discovery. The exhibition has the potential to be an emotional as well as an educational experience. Not only the experience of color, but also the precise construction of geometric principles are at the center of the entire work.

The exploration of color and form within a clearly defined formal framework is the starting point of the series of works “Archetypes of Concrete Art”. Six motifs are presented in six color variations each in a total of 36 large-format pictures measuring 170 x 170 cm. The variations offer the opportunity to compare aspects of form and color and to investigate why the same color combination looks so different in a different form.

All motifs originate from art historical tradition. They form the basic themes of concrete art, but so far none of these artists have realized the possibility of a consistent and calculated sequence of works. Darko C. Nikolic has thus created a unique, conceptual total work of art.

Take a look back at our former exhibitions:

Find catalogues of our Emerging Artists exhibitions from the last few years.

You’ll be able to see an excerpt of these artworks within our ‘Emerging Artist 2024’ exhibition at our upcoming fair this November (7-10). Be the first to hear about updates by signing up to our mailing list.