Multi-talented as a teenager, Kissmer was undecided whether to dedicate
himself to the visual arts or music. He studied at the Folkwangscule,
University of Essen, and later taught printmaking at the University of
Duisberg. As for his music, Kissmer is now an accomplished guitarist and
has recorded three albums to date. Although Kissmer's art is
relatively new to North America, the artist is no stranger to the
Americas, Europe, the Former Soviet Union, or Asia, all through which he
has traveled extensively. Described as a contemporary master, Kissmer
has been represented by galleries and museums from California to
Leningrad. [no-sidebar]
The artist employs combinations of etching, aquatint, drypoint, and
mezzotint techniques on his copperplates. A range of warm tones and an
electrifying edge he brings to his subject, in part link Kissmer's art
to a long tradition of realism in northern European painting. For this
skill Kissmer has built a solid reputation, an avid following in Europe
and a rapidly expanding interest in North America. The foundation of
Kissmer's art is in his passion for the still life, combining elements
of the female figure, everyday objects, and residential architecture. A
disquieting sense of heightened observation, limited palette, and
refined simplicity create moving works that are not conventionally
pretty, but compelling and confrontational.
Kissmer's expressive and exaggerated interpretation of detail is a trait
that permeates the body of his art, which has been described as
sensual, provocative, technical, and mysterious. The interplay of folds,
texture, and light have the effect of transforming a commonplace
subject into something extraordinary.
