S-Polytec meets contemporary art

The journey of our aluminium composite panels to the Royal Academy of Arts Summer Exhibition 2024.

Plastic sheet art

In German, the word art (Kunst) is already contained in plastic panels (Kunststoffe). Admittedly, this does not literally refer to art, but plastics, especially acrylic glass or aluminium composite panels, are popular materials when it comes to the creative production of objects and pictures of contemporary art. From large sculptures and installations to designer furniture and three-dimensional wall paintings, there is hardly an art form that does not make use of modern materials such as thermoplastics and composites.

Particularly in the 1960s and 1970s, which are still considered a formative era for design and colour, almost all everyday objects became art objects. From table and ceiling lights or floor lamps, for example the Arc floor lamp made of orange acrylic glass, whose design is still in use today almost unchanged, chairs, such as the lounge chair by Rossi Molinari made of transparent acrylic, to hi-fi systems in a spherical design, newspaper racks that are not even remotely recognisable as such at first glance, thermoplastics, which can be brought into almost any shape by hot forming, have enjoyed great popularity. Since then, plastics have become an integral part of visual artists. Painting or printing on plastic sheets, such as polystyrene, acrylic glass or aluminium composite panels, is also a common method. I myself own two strictly limited and signed prints by the Austrian artist Voka, in which the print is laminated onto an aluminium sandwich panel and covered with an acrylic glass panel. The plates are bonded together in a special process so that the valuable prints are shown off to their best advantage and protected from external influences.

Clever Art from Kranenburg – more than just a gallery

When a gallery orders plastic plates from us, I quickly become curious and wonder what will happen to the plastic plate cuttings. This was also the case when our customer Clever-Art placed an order in our online shop. When I realised that this company was located about 500 metres from our main location, I just called them up and asked if it would not make more sense to pick it up to save on shipping costs. After a short conversation, I was kindly invited to visit the gallery.

That Aluminium composite panels are ideal for direct printing is even mentioned in the product description of our plates and is offered by some online printing services. When printed, the brushed surface finish even creates a special effect that gives the motif a certain tension and depth.

Marketing has a lot to do with design and printing, and so the conversation quickly developed into a technical discussion about the different printing processes used at Clever-Art. This also gave me a chance to take a look at the printed aluminium composite panels that the company had ordered from us. The piece I saw was a particularly colourful design by Kev Munday. A British artist who is already one of the top contemporary art recommendations and has exhibitions in well-known galleries from London to Amsterdam, and Paris. The artwork, entitled ‘Space To Grow’, has even been included in the 2024 summer exhibition of the Royal Academy of Arts. The entire edition of the print, which was limited to 20 copies, sold out during the exhibition's opening week. The work, a UV print on our aluminium dibond in a format of 50cm x 50cm, is printed using the direct printing process. This is a form of digital printing that uses ultraviolet light to dry the ink. As the printer applies ink to the metal surface, a specially designed UV light follows closely behind, drying the ink instantly. This printing process achieves a fantastic vibrancy of colour that glistens in the light. The colours pick up on the finely brushed surface of the aluminium, creating a sparkling finish with a very special depth effect. It remains to be seen which motif by the artist will adorn the recently placed order for aluminium composite panels, but it is sure to be just as successful as his previous works.

Besides the printed composite panels, the print shop also uses many other media to create art. These naturally include a wide range of artist papers, with Hahnemühle certainly being one of the best-known representatives. The print shop works for Paul Kostabi, a musician and artist whose works are displayed in the best galleries around the world. These include the world-famous Guggenheim in New York. The The artist El Bocho, an anonymous representative of street art from Berlin is not only known for his street art in more than 40 countries, as well as in the German capital, but also for his large acrylic paintings on canvas, as well as numerous fine art prints. These are also printed in Kranenburg. The motifs, often illustrations of young girls in portrait format, are colourfully designed with shades bordered by outlines that are sometimes strong and sometimes delicate. The pictures, with fitting titles such as ‘I miss my Plattenbau’ or ‘Nothing is lost’, appear extremely intense with their partly muted, pastel, partly strong colours, whereby a certain heavy or sad emotion of the motifs stands in direct contrast. As rich in colour as El Bocho, are the pictures of Wilhelm Schlote. A German artist, cartoonist and children's book author

The intricately created 3D graphics and Giclees by street artist El Bocho, made from high-quality Hahnemühle paper, are all hand-signed.

The hand-signed city posters by Wilhelm Schlote are printed by Clever-Art and are limited to 300 copies.

I found it really exciting to see how an anonymous print, whether on aluminium composite panel or Hahnemühle Velvet paper, is signed, and thus becomes a work of art with a rarity value and the potential for appreciation. After all, art should always be seen as a kind of investment. Michael told me that the works are carefully packed in wooden frames and sent to artists all over the world, where they are then signed and usually dated before part of the edition finds its way back to Kranenburg so that they can be sold through their own online shop. In some cases, the artists even find their way to the idyllic village to sign their art on site.

Art as far as the eye can see

As a creative person with a keen interest in modern, contemporary art, it was a real treat for me. Not only are there countless art prints by the greatest artists of the last century, including Willi Baumeister, Picasso, Kandinsky, Piet Mondrian and Paul Klee, but also a great many works that have been signed by the artist and are either strictly limited or even unique. For example, I have a hand-signed postcard from Gerhard Richter, a wonderfully designed sketch from Friedensreich Hundertwasser, who is known for his special lines, shapes and colourful designs, or hand-drawn acrylic screen prints on heavy, structured paper from one of the most mysterious street artists of today. This is none other than Banksy, whose identity has not been fully established to this day and only guesses can be made as to who is behind the synonym. These monochrome screen prints are hand-signed by the rights holder, whose authenticity is proven by a certificate. The offer here, most of which is available for purchase in the online shop, also includes rare etchings, oil on canvas, and pencil and charcoal drawings, some of which were created by very well-known artists.

From my point of view, a clear recommendation for anyone who is enthusiastic about art or wants to make their home design something very special with unique pieces and high-quality art prints.

The art prints from the ‘Collection of European Masters’ shown here on thick paper are just a small selection of the extensive collection. Each of these prints, measuring 90x70cm, is available in the Clever-Art online shop for €29.00.

I particularly remember a rug by Robert Indiana in the world-famous LOVE lettering, which I really liked, because it is exactly the art direction that I personally like best. My enthusiasm was probably not hidden either. As a lover of Pop Art, I not only got my money's worth with the carpet. My absolute favourites here are Roy Lichtenstein, Andy Warhol and Keith Haring, so I could not resist buying a few very high-quality prints of the famous Marylins by Andy Warhol from 1993 and 1995. Yes, that's right. The prints are over 30 years old. Real rarities, especially considering their excellent condition. I also bought three prints by Paul Kostabi, made by Clever-Art, which were hand-signed by the Californian artist and printed in a strictly limited edition of just 25 copies on heavy Hahnemühle paper. These now adorn my hallway and greet my visitors with their intense and at the same time proactive lines, which remind me a little of the style of the artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, who died young.

It was a pleasure to see the bigger picture, because we in marketing have very little contact with customers and so we are always delighted to learn how our customers create real art from our plastic sheets. As an inventive mind, I am delighted that a gallery that produces and sells works by such renowned artists is located in the immediate vicinity. I would like to express my thanks for the great tour and the deep insights into the manufacturing processes and the local art on offer. It was extremely educational, interesting and impressive at the same time.

If you want to stay up to date, want to know what moves us and what is going on in our online shop, follow us on Instagram and Facebook. We appreciate every like.

Your Sascha from S-Polytec

The very elaborate and colourful 3D constructions by Ben Allen are hand-signed and strictly limited.

LEGAL NOTICE: The image rights for all the images in this article are held by Clever-Art, Kranenburg, and their authors, and have been kindly provided to us by Clever-Art.