This exhibition poster by Michiel Schuurman for the HorseMove ProjectSpace explores optical disunity, utilizing computer technologies to create endless patterns of replication and visual complication. These computerized distortions obliterate the easy reading of the poster, which challenges the conceptual bias of the printed poster as a means for conveying information. The visual bombardment of the repeated forms compels the viewer to look harder to decipher the information.
HorseMove ProjectSpace was an artist's cooperative exhibition project that lasted from April 1, 2006 until June 2008. It was the initiative of two artists, Frank Ammerlaan and Michael Agacki, who took over an abandoned space next to the Post CS building in downtown Amsterdam. Every three months, artists were invited at the recommendation of previous artists involved with the project. In the words of the founders, "It (was) the goal to create an amalgamation of consensus between the artists who will be confronted with the exhibited artwork(s) left by the last artist."
Schuurman was born in Amsterdam in 1974 and studied graphic design and typography for two years at the Koninklijke Academie voor de Beeldende Kunsten in the Hague, and then graduated in 2002 with a degree in graphic design from the Gerrit Rietveld Academy Amsterdam. He specializes in typography, designs his own typefaces, and prefers the discipline of working in black and white. In addition to posters, Schuurman has designed exhibition spaces, window displays, and architectural signage.
