Rolf Aamot is nothing short of a pioneer in the world of digital art. Born on September 28, 1934, in the second largest city of Norway, Bergen, Aamot has specialized in a field of photography that is hard to categorize and pigeon hole. Although he is also a painter, tonal-image composer, and film director, he is most interested in experimenting with electronic painting since it allows him to combine technology with the more traditional arts of music, film, painting, ballet, and theater.
Aamot’s father was a master woodcarver and carpenter and he educated his son along the lines of the Bauhaus principles. When Aamot was barely 17, he had his first solo exhibition at Bergen’s Paus Knudsen Gallery in Bergen. In 1953, the Natural History Museum at the University of Oslo awarded him a major public commission; a commendable achievement for Aamot, considering he was only 18.
Aamot studied painting at the Oslo National Academy of the Arts and went on to study film at the Dramatiska Instutet in Stockholm. His works have been displayed not just in Norway but other countries as well, such as France, Belgium, Germany, Scandinavia, Russia, USA, Japan, and Italy. Some of the more prestigious museums that have showcased his art are Louisiana Museum for Modern Arts, International Print Triennial in Krakow, Poland, and the Kalmar Art Museum.
He has been a prominent figure in various international art and film festivals all over the world. In 2000, he was extended a special invitation by the jury to participate at the National Norwegian Autumn Exhibition. His work can be found in several prestigious public collections as well.
Since the latter half of the 1980s, Aamot has turned his attention to digital photo-painting, computer paintings on canvas, and graphic art. He continues to make film and video art, generally in collaboration with Bjørg Lødøen, a celebrated composer and painter Kristin Lodoen Linder, known for her exceptional talent as a dancer, choreographer, and photographer.
To see more examples of Rolph Aamot’s work, please visit his website: http://www.rolfaamot.com/.
