Manager by day, expressionist by night
Güncelleme Tarihi:
by Ceylan Yeğinsu
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Şubat 03, 2009 00:00
ISTANBUL - Jiri Kobos, general manager of the Hyatt Regency Hotel Istanbul, is also a talented abstract expressionist who takes to his basement studio after office hours to paint. Kobos’ colorful work is on display at an exhibition at the Antique Hotel restaurant in Istanbul until Feb. 29
After a full day’s work managing a leading five star hotel, Jiri Kobos, general manager of the Istanbul Hyatt Regency, goes home, hangs up his coat and tie and takes to his basement where he unwinds by splashing dollops of colorful emotions onto a canvas, a form recognized in the art world as "abstract expressionism."
Beneath his tailored suit and highly professional exterior, Czech-born Kobos is a talented expressionist. His formal business-like persona is quite the contrast to his after hours’ bohemian-artistic persona. It is his artist persona that comes to life after office hours in the confines of his basement studio where he paints until the early hours of the morning.
Having worked and spent time in over 10 countries, Kobos has been globally influenced and inspired by his different experiences and surroundings in these foreign destinations. Self taught, Kobos developed an early interest in Oriental-style art during his time in Japan and China, but after moving to Germany and spending time with artists there, Kobos swiftly moved from acrylics to oils and found his original style using broad, colorful brush strokes inspired by the 1950’s abstract expressionism movement. Inspired by painters like Frans Kline, W. de Kooning and Lee Krasner, Kobos’s canvases are bold and colorful but with a unique style and signature featuring contrasting shapes and colors. It was the German painter, Hans Hofmann, and his teachings that influenced Kobos to evolve and pursue his ambition of forming color into non-objectivity, creating visual and emotional impact within his artistic expression. "It is about how open you are to experimenting and finding your own identity," said Kobos in an interview with Hurriyet Daily News & Economic Review.
Istanbul, a new chapter
Istanbul is a new chapter in both Kobos’s professional and artistic life. Having spent the past eight months living and working in the city he said; "Istanbul is a great destination and where one can live very well. It has a strong cultural history that is balanced with modernism." While the city has inspired Kobos artistically, he has not yet compiled an Istanbul exhibition of his work. Kobos told Hurriyet Daily News that the process is progressive; "You do not arrive in a country and just pick up a brush and then suddenly everything looks Ottoman. The country’s influence enhances your work gradually." When asked about specific Turkish influences, Kobos used the Bursa-province mountain, Uludağ, as an example. He said the peace he’s found through the combination of snow, sky and sunshine inspired him to paint.
As part of his future projects Kobos plans to participant in joint projects with Turkish artists. The first artist on Kobos’s agenda is the abstract expressionist Serhat Kocak, who Kobos described as a "promising young artist." Kobos has met Kocak and hopes to work on a project that takes two views on a topic or an impression and presents two different visions. Kobos said the project will be related to Istanbul in some way as it is a very active location that opens a window of artistic opportunity.
Aside from the 15 paintings hanging up in the Hyatt Regency’s management office, Kobos currently has an exhibition at the Antique Hotel restaurant. The exhibition is comprised of a selection of his paintings from different parts of world, covering a whole range of the pallet from pale blues to deep oranges and purple. When asked if he will be launching an official exhibition at the hotel, Kobos said, "No because this is my actual job and I would like to keep my worlds separate." He said the venue and space for his exhibitions are key and it is important to find a room that you can transform into a dramatic impression versus a large square open space where it is hard to control the lighting. Kobos said Istanbul has a wide range of unique and quaint venues that he hopes he can use for future solo exhibitions.
Kobos’s exhibition will be on display at the Antique Hotel in Beyoğlu, Istanbul until Feb. 29.
Beneath his tailored suit and highly professional exterior, Czech-born Kobos is a talented expressionist. His formal business-like persona is quite the contrast to his after hours’ bohemian-artistic persona. It is his artist persona that comes to life after office hours in the confines of his basement studio where he paints until the early hours of the morning.
Having worked and spent time in over 10 countries, Kobos has been globally influenced and inspired by his different experiences and surroundings in these foreign destinations. Self taught, Kobos developed an early interest in Oriental-style art during his time in Japan and China, but after moving to Germany and spending time with artists there, Kobos swiftly moved from acrylics to oils and found his original style using broad, colorful brush strokes inspired by the 1950’s abstract expressionism movement. Inspired by painters like Frans Kline, W. de Kooning and Lee Krasner, Kobos’s canvases are bold and colorful but with a unique style and signature featuring contrasting shapes and colors. It was the German painter, Hans Hofmann, and his teachings that influenced Kobos to evolve and pursue his ambition of forming color into non-objectivity, creating visual and emotional impact within his artistic expression. "It is about how open you are to experimenting and finding your own identity," said Kobos in an interview with Hurriyet Daily News & Economic Review.
Istanbul, a new chapter
Istanbul is a new chapter in both Kobos’s professional and artistic life. Having spent the past eight months living and working in the city he said; "Istanbul is a great destination and where one can live very well. It has a strong cultural history that is balanced with modernism." While the city has inspired Kobos artistically, he has not yet compiled an Istanbul exhibition of his work. Kobos told Hurriyet Daily News that the process is progressive; "You do not arrive in a country and just pick up a brush and then suddenly everything looks Ottoman. The country’s influence enhances your work gradually." When asked about specific Turkish influences, Kobos used the Bursa-province mountain, Uludağ, as an example. He said the peace he’s found through the combination of snow, sky and sunshine inspired him to paint.
As part of his future projects Kobos plans to participant in joint projects with Turkish artists. The first artist on Kobos’s agenda is the abstract expressionist Serhat Kocak, who Kobos described as a "promising young artist." Kobos has met Kocak and hopes to work on a project that takes two views on a topic or an impression and presents two different visions. Kobos said the project will be related to Istanbul in some way as it is a very active location that opens a window of artistic opportunity.
Aside from the 15 paintings hanging up in the Hyatt Regency’s management office, Kobos currently has an exhibition at the Antique Hotel restaurant. The exhibition is comprised of a selection of his paintings from different parts of world, covering a whole range of the pallet from pale blues to deep oranges and purple. When asked if he will be launching an official exhibition at the hotel, Kobos said, "No because this is my actual job and I would like to keep my worlds separate." He said the venue and space for his exhibitions are key and it is important to find a room that you can transform into a dramatic impression versus a large square open space where it is hard to control the lighting. Kobos said Istanbul has a wide range of unique and quaint venues that he hopes he can use for future solo exhibitions.
Kobos’s exhibition will be on display at the Antique Hotel in Beyoğlu, Istanbul until Feb. 29.