TWINS

A man walking his dog, a lonely hiker on top of a mountain or a bouquet of flowers- Tom Anholts new show TWINS portraits everyday sequences of life. The sceneries range from mystical waterfalls to lake sides and tropical beaches and almost seem unreal, but they also hold personal memories from places visited and seen in real life. The vast landscapes and blue waters are overdrawn by the light of a full moon, an often prominent element in Toms paintings. Combined, they create a dream like atmosphere, which ranges somewhere between serenity and melancholy. The „hidden“ figures, which you can find in almost every painting, will make you wonder if the painting is about them or if they are just passing by, like people you have accidentally caught on photo. Tom is an observer, with a great eye for detail. He notices small interactions and highlights them in his works. The story telling is subtle, but once you put the bigger picture in relation to the figures, you might unlock a completely different meaning.

Talking about the bigger picture: Every image is paired on a large and small canvas. Toms process often involves creating water colour studies or smaller paintings first. Getting a picture on a big canvas as a next step, can open up a whole new perspective. With TWINS we get to experience that effect. In this series however, Tom also started the other way around with some of the paintings, from big to small. We have to come closer, or take a step back to get an optimal view and understanding of the individual painting, but in the end- just like twins- they are the same but different. Like Tom and Maddy. Growing up with his twin sister Maddy, Tom not only saw the world through his own eyes but also hers. Their powerful connection made him experience life in a double context. An understanding which can probably only be fully grasped by twins. Losing Maddy in September 2023 to a deadly brain tumour, will forever leave a profound gap. Tom lost an essential part of his life, but he will always remain a twin and give the world an extra glance for Maddy.

By Nora Abakar