Casper's unique style, mixing photography and painted layers in his work and juxtaposing subject (beauty) with form (decay), has gained praise from critics as well as the public. His work has been exhibited at numerous international art fairs such as AIPAD New York, Photo London, Unseen, PAN Amsterdam and Photo Basel where he won the ALPA Award in 2019. His work is featured in private as well as public collections such as the Frans Hals Museum (Haarlem), Museum de Lakenhal (Leiden), Haagsch Historisch Museum and the Dutch Royal Library (The Hague). Recently, Fotografiska Museum in Stockholm and Japanmuseum Sieboldhuis in Leiden hosted solo exhibits of Faassen’s work. His ‘view on The Hague’ and ‘view on Dordrecht’ were featured next to Jan van Goyen’s original masterpieces in the The Hague Historical Museum and the Dordrecht Museum respectively.
(Credit: casperfaassen.com)
"Casper's work deals with beauty as well as melancholy. His women are aesthetic archetypes, but are portrayed behind and extra layer of either fog or glass, that creates a distance between the admirer and the subject. Casper technically reinforces this feeling of nostalgia by adding a layer of craquelure: by placing a layer of fast-drying acrylic paint on a layer of slow-drying oil paints, the surface 'cracks' and a dark coat of paint further highlights this sense of longevity.
By implementing this technique, Casper refers to the tradition theme of 'Vanitas', widely used in 17th-century painting: unlit candles, withered flowers, bubbles, skulls, fallen glasses and other symbols that represent the transience of earthly existence. By working with these traditional artistic subjects and themes, Casper places himself in a long line of painters who have transferred inspiration from one generation to the next."
- Meta Knol, director Museum de Lakenhal