Notes

Frank van Reenen was born in George, South Africa in 1969. He studied Fine Art at the University of Stellenbosch, graduating in 1993. Van Reenen works in sculpture, animation, painting and printmaking and produces characters which are charming and immediately identifiable. His work draws inspiration from a multitude of subjects ranging from toys, pop culture, anime, suburbia, everyday life in SA, to his loyal sidekick Truman, a French Bulldog, who accompanies the artist to his studio and pretty much everywhere else.

His enamelled resin sculptures with their ice-cream colours and deceptive simplicity explore the strange duality of childhood and tease the viewers’ perception. Van Reenen’s work evokes the nostalgia of quiet Sunday afternoons, trips to the park, and often just the sheer joy and innocence of the child. And while these works appeal to the “child within”, van Reenen’s work forces the viewer to look deeper into the veneer of simple suburban existance.