Car Portraits
Erik Thys
(2010)
Dr. Erik Thys is a practicing psychiatrist and author who occasionally makes art. One of the key interests informing his visual practice is the relationship between visual art and psychological frailty. The selection of drawings included in Heavy Metal Parking Lot are taken from a vast selection that Thys has produced over the past decade. The drawings are executed on stationary, office paper, prescription pads and other forms of stationary and are described by Thys as portraits. These drawings are frequently made by Thys when he is somewhat preoccupied in other ways; listening to conversations or even seeing patients. To some extent the act of producing these drawings serves as a focus or meditative tool.
The excerpt below provides some further insight into these drawings in his own words:
"Just like every child I had a lot of fun drawing. It was an important mission in Kinderland, an activity that allowed you to shape and color the decor, furniture and heroes of the world show. I have never outgrown this stage and continue to feel an urge to graphically represent the shapes, people, situations around me in some way. Intangible things such as moods, characters and communication also require a graphic expression. Hence my mania to also draw during conversations, even if it concerns professional conversations with clients. For me, these are often very inspiring moments for which only gratitude fits. The resulting drawings formed the basis for a series of “car portraits” in which the intangible encounter was punched into the drawn metal of a car, bringing it to life."