Fifty Logo

a solo exhibition by corné eksteen
aity gallery | franshhoek | south africa
28.10.23 || 17.11.23

FIFTY

ARTIST'S EXHIBITION STATEMENT

"How did it get so late so soon? It's night before it's afternoon. December is here before it's June. My goodness how the time has flown. How did it get so late so soon?" ― Dr. Seuss

Time is a fundamental dimension of the human experience. We use it to coordinate our lives, organise our memories and to make plans. Culturally we think of time as an unstoppable linear flow. Although a problematic concept in physics, we have perfected measuring it, and developed a refined "sense of time" as a mandatory tool for a healthy personal life and professional success.

Our subjective experience of time is however very different from how time is measured. Psychologists and social scientists agree that our experience of time speeds up with age. In a recent scientific study published in the "European Review," Professor Adrian Bejan presented an argument based on the physics of neural signal processing. He hypothesized that, over time, the rate at which we process visual information slows down, and that this is what makes time "speed up" as we grow older.

He argues that: "As we age, the size and complexity of the networks of neurons in our brains increases – electrical signals must traverse greater distances and thus signal processing takes more time. Moreover, ageing causes our nerves to accumulate damage that provides resistance to the flow of electric signals, further slowing processing time." Focusing on visual perception, Bejan suggests that slower processing times result in us perceiving fewer "frames-per-second" – more actual time passes between the perception of each new mental image. This is what leads to time passing more rapidly.

It is within this context that Corné Eksteen, who is turning 50, explores his own personal subjective experience of time speeding up. He uses the number 50 and all its contemporary and pop culture associations as inspiration for a body of work that reflects on 5 decades of lived experience and memory. Visually, the work explores the notion of less "frames-per-second."

FIFTY

IMPORTANT DATES

28.10.2023 | 11H00

Official opening of "FIFTY" at Art in the Yard Gallery,
Shop 1, Heritage Square, 9 Huguenot Street, Franschhoek.

28.10.2023 | 12H30

Official release of exhibition catalogue, artist's notes and work analysis online at xtn50.art

17.11.2023 | 18H00

Exhibition concludes at Art in the Yard Gallery, Franschhoek.

FIFTY

EXHIBITION CATALOGUE
Corné Eksteen's 50mhZ

50MHz

Oil on canvas | 80 X 80cm
Corné Eksteen's 50 Flavours of entanglement

50 Flavours of entanglement

Oil on canvas | 100 x 100cm
Corné Eksteen's 50 Second Time-lapse

50 Second Time-lapse

Oil on canvas | 80 x 80cm
Corné Eksteen's 50 Buitenkant Street

50 Buitenkant Street

Oil on canvas | 50 x 50cm
Corné Eksteen's Fifty sunset walks on Marine Parade

Fifty sunset walks on Marine Parade

Oil on canvas | 50 x 50cm
Corné Eksteen's Fifty taxi rides in Manhatten

Fifty taxi rides in Manhatten

Oil on canvas | 50 x 50cm
Corné Eksteen's MMXXIII.L

MMXXIII.L

Oil on canvas | 80 x 80cm
Corné Eksteen's Anachronism IV

Anachronism IV

Oil on canvas | 100 x 100cm
Corné Eksteen's Anachronism V

Anachronism V

Oil on canvas | 100 x 100cm
Corné Eksteen's 50 Shades of Ultramarine

50 Shades of Ultramarine

Oil on canvas | 100 x 100cm
Corné Eksteen's Double helix

Double Helix

Oil on canvas | 120 x 170cm

Read an editorial on "FIFTY"
Oct/Nov 2023 ArtTimes on ISSUU

FIFTY

GENERAL INFORMATION

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Works available from AITY until 31 January 2024.
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