Potted plant

Pencil on paper, 35 x 28 cm

Study of a tiny pineapple plant. I liked the growth pattern and the shapes of its drying external leaves.

Still life with watering can

Oil pastel on paper, 30 x 23 cm

I rediscovered my little viewfinder which is a great tool to develop bold compositions. It greatly helps me to crop my objects in unusual ways, whereas otherwise I tend to create very conventional arrangements.

Winter Market (R)

Coloured pencil on paper, 29.5 x 42 cm

The Farmer’s market in Midtown Manhattan. During the winter times the market only comprises a few pavillions. I found it interesting to depict the somewhat abstract patterns of people and merchandise in the midground. The drawing was inspired by Natalies ‘Black Entrance’ painting, I responded to the concept of a ‘street scene’.

New York Lights (Male figure) (R)

Oil on paper, 60.5 x 46 cm

This painting was a response to Natalie’s ‘Thinking Man’, with a lot of subconscious work going on. I think I was inspired by the irregular, patchy colour patterns and the male figure in Natalie’s painting. I developed a colour pattern phantasy in warm yellow-orange-red-brown spots and the idea to somehow integrate a male torso. The colour pattern was created as an acrylic underpainting, and the process was very intuitive and very exhausting. I was ready to abandon the torso idea but the painting looked incomplete and unbalanced. After I added the transparent torso, the painting felt complete, that vague initial idea had materialized.

Still life with squash, zuchini and onion (R)

Oil on canvas, 19 x 39 cm

A kind of practice still life inspired by Natalie’s ‘Jam’ charcoal sketch, of which I liked the bold and simple composition. In my painting, I focused on developing shades of the local colour to emphasize volume, and tried to keep colours fresh. Overall I think the painting would benefit from a more elaborate context – the white and beige background is a bit dull.

Abstract composition (Interior view)

Collagraph print on paper, 21 x 30 cm

I developed the composition for this print with the viewfinder. I was looking for interior views with interesting compositions which would lend themselves for an abstracted treatment. The printing plate was made by glueing cut paper shapes onto cardboard, then sealing with shellac. This is the final of a series of six prints, where I experimented with the technique. It combines the intaglio method of wiping away ink from the relief (dark blue linear elements) with relief inking (red areas) and was printed in a single run through the press on slightly damp cartridge paper.