Christopher Kieling: Painting Between Precision and Poetry

Christopher Kieling (born 1988), a Berlin-based painter, creates works that transcend the image. They are mirrors of our time and psychological maps of a generation caught between closeness and distance, digitality and reality. His unique aesthetic combines the intellectual precision of high-class graphic design with an in-depth understanding of theatrical stage design. The Berlin-based artist creates works of structural figuration in meticulously controlled psychological stage spaces.

He gained international recognition with his “Sierra” series (2021), created during lockdown, which captured the collective state of emergency with sensitive imagery. Since then, his work has been exhibited in major galleries in London, Copenhagen and Frankfurt.

Kieling's method is based on formal discipline. A graduate of the renowned Central Saint Martins University of Art and Design in London, his canvases display a structural clarity achieved through a multi-stage production process. He masterfully combines “hard geometric patterns and flowing, simple lines” to execute his works in mixed acrylic and oil techniques. Inspired by the mathematically influenced works of M. C. Escher and Euan Uglow, this technique guarantees structural integrity, with smooth surfaces in muted pastel tones standing in sharp contrast to the layered reality of the central elements. Inspired by artists such as Neo Rauch, Kieling sets himself apart by using this geometric precision not for surreal, historically charged landscapes, but for the architectural structuring of his controlled psychological stages.

As the son of stage actors, Kieling's compositions always function as stages, creating a conscious dialogue between protagonists and their surroundings. Through the careful placement of 'props and expressive gestures', he presents viewers with stories that must be actively 'deciphered'. This conceptual decision elevates his figurative work to a sophisticated level.

The E30 Gallery in Frankfurt is delighted to represent this extraordinary artist and present his latest works.