No more worries
A new exhibition is coming! New video on YouTube and new portrait
Dear all,
In the October newsletter I shared with you the fantastic news of my twin pregnancy, but also the concerns that come with it. I just couldn't accept that the guidance during this wonderful period was so far from what I felt comfortable with and a birth in the hospital, without my own midwife, seemed like a nightmare to me. I came up with all kinds of scenarios in my head, but none fully matched my wishes. There was no room left for thinking about fun, artistic projects and I kept feeling tired and dissatisfied.
Fortunately, I have now found a healthcare provider whom I trust and it really feels like a burden has been lifted off my shoulders. For the first time since the summer I am making plans for new videos, paintings and exhibitions. I have also resumed my good habits in the morning and I can finally enjoy my pregnancy that has been very smooth so far. Except for a few painful ligaments, because yes, the belly grows quite quickly.
This week is all about the final preparations for the group exhibition at Galerie Année in Haarlem. The exhibition runs from November 23 to December 29 and in addition to finishing the edges of a few canvases, varnish also needs to be applied. In Haarlem I will exhibit smaller works painted during the festival in Noordwijk, but also a number of paintings made in and around Warffum.
The atmosphere of this season is very inspiring and helps me enormously to paint the magical paintings for Naarden The Art Fair. The process is slow, because tonal values, colors and composition are not there to observe. Unlike working from life, almost everything on the canvas has to come from my own imagination and that is quite a challenge. What do I add and what not? To what extent should the painting be close to nature in terms of light and color? Where is the boundary with the ornamental? And most importantly… why did I do this to myself? In the YouTube video above I talk about the work process and you can see what the current state of affairs is.
The fact that a slower work process is not necessarily associated with painting from imagination I can prove with the creation of the portrait here below. I worked on this live for a total of four mornings, but after the first session there seemed to be little progress. The difficulty of painting a live portrait is of course the changing light, when working with daylight, but also the mobility of the model and my inability to shut up and chat. When you're having a good time together, capturing the mouth and eyes in particular is quite difficult, I can tell you. Not to mention losing concentration and flow.
Although I wasn't able to capture the expression I was looking for, I am happy with the composition and colour harmony in the end result. These parts tell just as much a story as the face of Attie, whose house I spent a lot of time in as a child. The memory of all the blue and red in the kitchen encouraged me to make this painting of her. I consciously chose to leave out certain pigments, such as burnt sienna and cadmium yellow deep. These are colours that I usually use liberally, but provide a certain warmth that I didn't think suited the space. I was able to solve the lack of pigments in all kinds of new ways and I will definitely work with a limited palette more often.
If you are enthusiastic after seeing this portrait and you would like to commission one or discuss the possibilities of painting a portrait from life, please contact me. I will be working less in the near future, but I can carefully pick up some new projects again in the summer. See you soon!
Anna Maria
