“A zone of silence and of pure possibilities for a new beginning.”
Otto Piene
At one point I came to realise that Dutch ZERO had to be my artistic starting point. Late 2015 I made my first relief in the style of Jan Schoonhoven. Just like the first time I saw a real Schoonhoven -when I was 6-, imitating one was an eyeopener.
At the same time I felt a strong urge to develop my own distinct signature. I saw that there was too little room for evolution in “absolute minimalism” for me. Also I gradually tried to move away from 3d towards 2d using subtle colors and hatches and so forth. In this process it became clear to me that the little steps that I used were interesting in and of itself and I made the series lumina (’20). From that came a series that I call excavation (’22), and afterimages (’24) is a combination of the two.
A piece of art starts somewhere, for me it’s often a concrete start lately. For instance a visualization of a poem or event. During the process I respond to what is already on the panel, with a contrast, a complement or an association. It can also be “random”: something that pops into my mind or an external factor. For instance music I’m listening to or something I see around me at that moment. Many layers are put on the canvas. This happens different media and mixed techniques.
Sometimes I already have the final image in my head, before I start the first layer, but usually an image will start to dawn on me during the process and will slowly start steering towards it.
I write, paint, erase, scrape, mask, sand, draw, spray, rub and repeat… with brush, sandpaper, cloth, spray can, knife, hand, tape, pencil, ink and more.
All things blend in the first phase and anything goes. Sometimes I already have the final image in my head, before I start the first layer, but usually an image will start to dawn on me during the process and will slowly start steering towards it.
I never know when a work is finished. At some point it feels good enough -between creator and created- and both continue separately but sharing a bond forever.
x
