When viewing Martin Köster’s art for the first time, you can feel and absorb his intentions, latching onto a thought process filled with curiosity. Viewers can make the journey through a fantastic gallery of strict vanishing points in oil paintings that merge with emotions to form an artwork that, in its triviality, still remains absolutely unique.Köster will not be deterred by dizzying heights or danger in order to achieve his goal of internalizing a city’s soul and transforming it into paint, bringing in his own experiences with every stroke of the brush. Be it a skyscraper, helicopter or an image of rush hour, the artist specializes in drawing from the roofs of the skyline and showing the vividness of a city from above. While many painters enjoy nature, Köster’s approach to draw from high places is inspiringly new. “Every time I am surprised how much life I can observe down below. I feel the freedom and seclusion which inspire me,” explains Köster.In 2018, Köster received his first invitations to international exhibitions. A few years later, the contrast between dark buildings and bright lights has reached the international art world. He has gained an international following and been the subject of successful exhibitions in London, New York, Hong Kong, Hamburg, Paris and many other cities worldwide. 

https://www.americanartcollector.com/issues/201/martin-k%C3%B6ster

Recent Interview posted by Martin Koster - 

L_Amour-Magazine-Article-Martin-Koster.

 1.What was it in your background that sent you down an artistic path?
I painted my first city painting in a friend’s studio. I fini- shed it after 3 months. I went home on the tram and had my painting with me. On the tram, a passenger spoke to me about the painting. He immediately bought it from me for € 250. I was very happy about this success. I never would have expected that. When I got home and I immediately started to paint a new work. Since that day I have been continuously painting cityscapes in bright colors.

2.How has your life as an artist evolved since then? below. I feel the freedom and seclusion that inspires me.“After I had finished the first works, the first successes slowly came. My technique got better. This encouraged me to paint day and night. After only a year I had my first small gallery that exhibited my paintings. More galleries in Ger- many were added piece by piece. At some point the larger galleries became interested in me and I was invited to ex- hibitions. More and more galleries became aware of my art and finally I got my first international exhibitions. That was the breakthrough and now I’m invited to exhibitions all over the world.

3.What inspires you to paint?

I like to be inspired by the city that I want to paint right now. I often paint on the roof of a skyscraper. From up there I can see the heart of the city. A pulsating rhythm. When I feel this flair, it is easier for me to paint the city. Even when I look at the paintings later, I can feel this vitality. It is not always easy to get the permits to paint on the roofs of the skyscra- pers. But the effort is always worth it. 

4.How do you choose a subject?

I have many international exhibitions each year. Usually I travel to the city earlier and walk through the streets at night. I then look for street perspectives that appeal to me. As soon as I find a perspective that I like, I stop. Then I make a sketch that I later paint in my studio. Now I have a large collection of these sketches. When I choose a sketch to draw, that’s the chance for me to travel back to the town. I then remember the moments that I experienced there.

5.Who or what are your creative influences?

A lot of my paintings are about light. The light of the sun shining into the street canyon. The light from the shops and windows that are reflected on the streets. I am happy to be inspired by old masters of painting. For example William Turner. He knew how to represent light on the surface of the sea. I like to transfer this feeling this to my modern light sources.

6.How would you describe your own style?

My style is a mixture of abstraction and realism. Very bright lights and very dark shadows. I try to put these opposites in a perfect relationship. The viewer should I have the oppor- tunity to see something in the painting for himself. Perhaps he remembers a moment of his own that he experienced in a city.

7.Do you have a favourite place?

The view from the roof of a high-rise is my favorite place. There you can see the energy and hectic of the city from a distance. It’s quiet up there on the roof. Nobody bothers you when you paint and I’m still in the middle of the city.

8.What is your preferred medium and why? Do you use more than one medium? Have your preferences chan- ged?
I paint with oil paints. The intensity of the colors is crucial for me. I find this with the oil paints. For painting I only use the brush at the end. I start with spatulas and painting knives that I have made myself.

9.Can you describe a typical working day (if there is one!)?
When I’m not traveling, I work in my studio. Then I look at my collection of sketches from the last trip. When I look at the sketches, the memories and feelings of the street scenes also comes back. When I like a sketch I start to paint it. Often I paint into the night. When I go home, I often look forward to the next day when I can continue to work.

10.Who or what influences your style or choice of sub- ject?
Thanks to the city motif, I can process an infinite number of light sources in a painting. I have not yet found a motif that would be similar. That’s why the city motif is still my favo- rite motif even after so many years. Maybe at some point I will find a motif that appeals to me. But I think this will take some time.

11.Could you supply a sentence either about yourself as

an artist or about your work?

I’ve always been fascinated by light in paintings. When rays of light break out from dark corners and bring the cities to life, I feel beauty.

12.Does your personal experience come across in your paintings – if so how?
When I walk through a city, I am interested in the many sto- ries that can be seen around every corner. Especially at night. The way I perceive the city, I try to reflect it in my paintings.

13.What do you get out of painting? Or perhaps, what is most important to you about your art?
I want people to feel the romance of the city while looking at my works. You should remember a story or a feeling that you experienced yourself in a city. If I bring these feelings and memories into people’s heads, then I’ve done my job. My paintings should therefore also remain abstract, so that there is room for interpretation by the viewer.

14.What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?

Don’t paint if you’re not in the mood.

15.More importantly... what’s the best piece of advice you could give
In art there are many rules about how to paint. Never stick to it!

16.What is the most important thing in the world to you?

The freedom to continue my own artistic path without exter- nal influences.

17.There is a film on your website in which you work on a picture with an easel in front of you in the middle of a light-flooded street between skyscrapers. In another film you paint on a roof with the city below you. You rarely use such places of work, right?

It’s becoming more and more common lately. It used to be difficult to get permits for high-rise buildings. My art has become better known in recent years, which helps immen- sely in getting permits for such painting campaigns. It also happens again and again that private individuals or galleries who like my art make such painting adventures possible for me.

18.You even used a helicopter to get motives?!

Yes, that was in New York this year. The door has been ex- panded so I could see the whole city well. A crazy experien- ce as the helicopter then hovered directly over Manhattan’s skyscrapers. Many of the photos that were taken later made it into paintings.

19.On the basis of which criteria do your sketches and photos then become your pictures?
There are no fixed rules for this. It’s a build feeling. Usually

the photo or the sketch reminds me of a beautiful moment or a special impression of the city. Then I stop and get out my pad and pencil.

20.How long do you work on an image?

Very different: If it is done quickly, then the painting usua- lly turns out well. If it takes a long time (and sometimes it can be weeks), then I usually don’t like something about the work, so I keep correcting it until I’m satisfied. I also have a great many works that never made it to the final signature.

21.Her pictures can be found in numerous galleries. You have to do that first too. How hard is it to get accepted into prestigious galleries?
For me it was like walking up a flight of stairs. In the begin- ning there were only very small galleries that wanted to ex- hibit me. But step by step it became bigger galleries. It helps immensely when you exhibit internationally. That’s what makes you interesting for many galleries and they give you a chance. If the art then sells, then you are often recommended to other galleries. It’s a long road, but it’s fun!

Exhibitions (selected):

2022

• Group Exhibition – Splish Splash – Gallery Kunst-Schäfer – Wiesbaden, Germany
• ArteGenova – Genoa, Italy
• Exhibition Villa Stöcken – Solingen, Germany
• PaviArt – Pavi, Italy
• Montechiari Fair – Brescia, Italy
• Discovery Art Fair Cologne – Cologne, Germany
• Incorporating Hamburg – Hamburg, Germany
• White Art Vernissage Adventure – Bielefeld, Germany
• art Karlsruhe – Karlsruhe, Germany
• Andrea Bocelli Foundation – Charity auction by Christie´s – Forte dei Marmi, Italy
• ARTe Wiesbaden – Wiesbaden, Germany
• Soloexhibition Jülich – Galerie an der Zitadelle – Jülich, Germany
• ARTMUC, Munich, Germany
• C.A.R. Contemporary Art Ruhr – Essen, Germany
• Discovery Art Fair Frankfurt – Frankfurt, Germany
• Affordable Art Fair Hamburg – Hamburg, Germany
• ArtePadova – Padova, Italy
• Roma Arte in Nuvola – Rome, Italy
• Espace22 – Trough German Eyes – Monaco, Monaco
• EGC Eurogroup Consulting – Vernissage  – Essen, Germany

2021

• Incorporating Hamburg – Hamburg, Germany
• ARTe Wiesbaden – Wiesbaden, Germany
• ARTMUC Munich – Munich, Germany
• Soloexhibition / Gallery Kunst-Schaefer – Wiesbaden, Germany
• C.A.R. Contemporary Art Ruhr  / Zollverein – Essen, Germany
• Discovery Art Fair Frankfurt / Frankfurt Messe – Frankfurt, Germany
• Affordable Art Fair Hamburg – Hamburg, Germany
• Discovery Art Fair Cologne – Cologne, Germany
• Beyond Art Exhibition – Hanover, Germany

2020

• Foward Group Exhibition / NYA Gallery – New York, United States of America
• RURAL VS URBAN Group Exhibition / THE BRICK LANE GALLERY – London, United              Kingdom
• Discovery Art Fair Köln / XPOST Cologne – Cologne, Germany (postponed)
• Discovery Art Fair Frankfurt / Frankfurt Messe – Frankfurt, Germany (postponed)
• ARTMUC Munich / Isarforum – Munich, Germany
• Grand Touring Art Night / Ritz Carlton – Toronto, Canada (postponed)
• A.R. Contemporary Art Ruhr / Zollverein – Essen, Germany
• Affordable Art Fair Hamburg  – Hamburg, Germany (postponed)

2019

• Sea & City Duo Exhibition / Gallery Flying Colours – Buxtehude, Germany
• The Texture Show Group Exhibition / Gallery 104 Broadway – New York, Vereinigte             Staaten
• Armory Art Week Group Exhibition / NYA Gallery – New York, United States of America
• Equinox Exhibition / NYA Gallery – New York, United States of America
• “The Healing Show” Exhibition / Art Center, NYA Gallery – New York, United States of          America
• Group Exhibition Mercedes-Benz Art Night / Marcus Schäfer Kunst-Art – Hong                    Kong, China
• World Art Roadshow Group Exhibition / World Art Roadshow – Moscow, Russia
• ARTBAHO Fair / Spain Expo – Barcelona, Spain
• Group Exhibition / Gallery Birgit Berger – Düsseldorf, Germany
• ARTMUC Fair / Praterinsel 3 – Munic, Germany
• Exhibition Orric Building / Marcus Schäfer Kunst-Art – Düsseldorf, Germany
• A.R. Contemporary Art Ruhr / Unesco Welterbe-Zollverein – Essen, Germany
• Affordable Art Fair / Messeplatz 1 – Hamburg, Germany

2018

• Join me in the City Group Exhibition / Eclectic Gallery – London, United Kingdom
• Cityscapes Group Exhibition / Gallery 104 Broadway – New York, United States of              America

Publications:

• Book: Martin Koester, The city painter; 2019
• Book: Martin Koester, The city painter; 2020
• Documentation: Martin Koester, The city painter; 2019 Klingebiel – CREATIVE