Be a part of the art process.
As an independent artist I essentially operate a small business in which I can build up my value with each sale or customer interaction. Having had an art career for over twenty years I know it is a serious business and a difficult one. However, a poll shows that due to a lack of financing or investors makes that almost half of all business fail, let alone the art businesses. Even though I have been in business for long, lately I experienced some set-backs of dramatic events like Covid and hurricane Ian.
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I paint to make sense of the world. It is, I realize, a solitary profession that demands focus and perseverance to come to deeper insights of
situations, interactions between people and reflect on it. From early childhood I had many questions that were not answered by the adults in
a satisfying way. I discovered that when I was drawing, people would leave me alone and in this way I created my own world which was pleasant.
It also helped me finding answers. This is how I became good at drawing, I just did it a lot. I have to admit that I also have a gift to see
architectural dimensions without any problem. In my early years, looking for a career, I didn’t dare to become a professional artist,
(nobody in my family was) and sought work as a graphic designer, teacher and photographer. These were the jobs that paid for my vivid
imagination and unique world view. At least for a while.
The older I got and the more life threw curve balls at me the more I felt the need to create work based on my own ideas. This autonomy
however also made marketing a lot harder. I succeeded one day by depicting my ancestors in an unusual way and selling the work in my home
land. However in the village in the USA where I lived it was a lot harder to sell these. When somebody didn’t like or understood the work,
I couldn’t pay the rent. For years I worked on commissions and supported myself that way.
Eventually I figured it all out by giving lectures, making paintings and having exhibitions….. until Covid hit. We all were just recovering
from Covid when the hurricane Ian hit. That became more dramatic for me personally because now I lost my studio space. The confined space
of my new home forced me to re-invent my life once again.
More than ever before I am convinced of the importance of Art in everybody’s life. To make feelings tangible through colors and shapes adds
to the wellbeing of you and me. I create art to find beauty where there is too much ugliness and I paint to find order in the chaos of my
surroundings. I am an artist who helps creating awareness of pressing problems. Visual art has always been an instrument of power. The
power of shared beauty, the power of a shared concern, the power of a picture of what it means to be human is immeasurable. Art brings
people together physically and culturally, through its capacity to tell a community's shared story, to inspire reflection, and form connections
that transcend differences. You can feel it in the series I made of the disaster in my homeland a couple of years before I was born.
It bounds the recent events when the hurricane flooded the street of Fort Myers, which is the first big city, in the exact same way.
Teaching
I believe in the skill of visual arts. Just like music and dance you need to know the basics before you can express emotions or a world view.
The proliferation of the internet and other state-of-the-art technology has made it easier for people to self-teach and self-train in the arts.
I provide different in-depth art classes to teach people techniques. Some people even think that the act of engaging in these activities are
enough to improve their health by reducing stress and anxiety. The ones who are practicing an art skill themselves say they appreciate the
professionals on a deeper level. Others say that the act of creating art for them is a meditative process, or it allows them to channel their
emotions into their work. As such it is rewarding in itself. In either case, practitioners of the arts can unburden themselves of some concerns
that lead to mental or physical strain. I support the effort by giving trainings and discuss results.
To not be dependent on the sale of works of art, I am giving you the opportunity to support my work in the conviction that it is important for
more than just one person or just one art work. Art is considered fundamental to culture and society because it helps to shape people's values
and opinions, and it speaks to the universality of the human experience. Future generations can look back on these images and understand the
norms of the past. As an artist, I am inviting you to open an ongoing dialogue with me and throughout society through sponsorship. Either as
an artist or a teacher I appreciate you helping me to continue my work on a path that has significant importance for all sorts of people.
Questions?