I was looking for offline visibility and the cosmos sent a far larger project in the spring of 2021. In a prime location, where a spacious studio is combined with an exhibition space. For my own artwork and that of many other artists. In the meanwhile, more than 100 artists have exhibited here.
Where Nobody meets Friends
Painting is my personal journey of selfdiscovery that is translated into something tangible.
The 4 elements influence my intuitive use of color. My artwork is inspired by the generosity of nature and harvested in the empty space. The result is evocative, layered and drummed to the beat of music. Flowing like water, thin like air, vibrating like fire, creating like earth.
Free from expectations. Patiently. A game of experiment and research. Waiting for the flow where time and space no longer exist and that gives access to the subconscious, or perhaps a collective creative field. Where all is. From invisible to present, from elusive to tangible.
It determines the atmosphere of the artwork, the emotion it evokes, the energy it radiates. It is, so to speak, a meditative process until the canvas reveals something that surprises or intrigues me
When the outcome also touches the spectator, I am on seventh cloud.
A long time ago, I read this expression in a book about Japan and it turned my world upside down. The traditional Dutch expression says ‘where there is a will there is a way’. A minor change in the sentence results in a huge difference in thinking and working method. It allows me to paint without a plan, to discover and to enjoy the path that ultimately reveals itself.
The canvas dictates, the hand follows, in zen modus. And that does’t always work Classical music is the gateway for me.
Through music I invite my subconscious to process and manifest something. The layers in the music transform into structure and colours. It is as if 2 fields communicate and vibrate apart from myself.
And so the creation process transcends the mere tangible and the work of art gets a soul.
My paintings in acrylic paint can differ greatly in color palette and atmosphere. It has to do with the fact that I paint intuitively and am open to the moment.
Yet you can recognize my visual language by the fact that there is always something of an underlying structure on the canvas, applied with different materials. Ranging from very subtle to a 3D effect.
I am mostly self-taught, but I would like to mention a few people who helped me along the way.
I thank Rita Bellens and Alice van Dael for their fascinating lessons and the passionate transfer of their knowledge. Thanks to Rita I reconnected with the intuitive 10 years ago, Alice taught me many techniques, enough to continue experimenting and develop my own visual language afterwards. I can also highly recommend the workshops at Wisper.
With her voice liberation lessons, soprano Martine Reyners unleashed more than just my voice. She helped me connect with heaven and earth, an experience you can have while singing, and also while painting. My voice is now expressed on the canvas.
Volkstraat 62-64, 2000 Antwerp
Thu-Fri-Sa 14.00-18.00 and Sun 12.00-17.00 or by appointment
martine@nobodyandfriends.art – +32 (0)475 77 02 05
