I am a painter of abstract landscapes.

My work derives from an experimental state of mind. 

I investigate different possible usages of media, depending on what I want to say or show. 

Collage, pouring and layering with paints, in relief and cutouts, allow me to play with the shifting between different worlds.

I often use textures of bare trees, blossoms, orbs and pearls. These textures show up in detailed areas. They can be the grid of something bigger, like fractals.

Lately I have been comparing my process of working with a beach comber. My dad would roam at the beaches of one of the Northern Dutch Islands (Terschelling or Schiermonnikoog), looking for treasure.

He would build something with things he would find. 

I roam the Arroyo's here in Santa Fe New Mexico, right behind our house, with my eyes. My findings will sometimes show up in a painting, sometimes shifting between places and time.

Santa Fe April 2023

'Feet on the earth'

On a windy day in April, about to be May, I am hiking in the Arroyo with our black labrador Marley. Happy and strong tail in the wind. Her tail becomes a true member of her body. My body connects with the earth and the head empties in the air. Connecting with the here and now and what has been. My dad was walking right here, and I am imagining breathing in the same air that he was breathing in and out right here. He was entertaining his 5 year old grandson, pretending to be a train. This grandson will be going to middle school next year. And the train keeps on going....

Stay connected!

The season has started for the Santa Fe Society of Artists! Come and see us right behind the plaza of Santa Fe. It's the parking lot that belongs to the First National 1870 bank.

Dienke

Santa Fe September 2022

'Autumn shows us how beautiful it is to let things go'

Fall is in the air. The beautiful saffron yellow is showing up everywhere.

It's amazing how we take things for granted until something happens to us mortals.. I had to let go of our Volvo station wagon. This was the car that held the panels and most of my paintings to pack and bring to the Art Market. I got in a car accident on my way over to the market, a couple of weeks ago. No physical damage, just the end of the faithful old Volvo. Not sure if I find 'the letting go' to be beautiful. I was looking at the NL sticker on the back of the car while it was being towed away.  I will have to go back to the Netherlands to get another one of those stickers, I thought. Maybe there is beauty in that right there. I find myself looking at possible flights already.

We will be showing with the Santa Fe Society of Artists for 5 more weekends. After that, it will get cold and dark. The tent, the panels, the weights and the Art work will be in the storage unit, waiting to get out again. 

And the earth goes to sleep. The vibrant colors are 'gone' for now. The energy of those colors are underground. Winter is coming. My favorite time of year to create. There is so much under the surface. Stillness on the outside and preparations are being made on the inside. I find it to be very nurturing. And hopeful. 

Take care of yourself,

Dienke

Santa Fe, April 2022

'In and out'

It is hard work. My husband and our 11 year old son are helping me to get the show on the road at the crack of dawn and set up at the parking lot. Dream team, really. The wind from last week was laying low. The sun is being generous this weekend. Thank you weather.

There I am, sitting in my gallery. Glamping with my art on a parking lot. Makes me think of one of my art teachers from The Netherlands; 'Put your art out on the side walks, show it, it doesn't matter where, just do it' (thank you Kees Slegt). I'm doing it.  

Aha erlebnissen come sudden and unexpected, that's why it's an 'ahaaaaa'.. One gentleman came by three times to see a painting of mine. The piece is called 'Wired'. The second time he came, there was another lady joining him who said this; 'The reason this is a good painting, is that there is an in and an out. Essential in life she said and she ran off. I wish I could have talked about that with her more. I understood her comment right away and it was applicable to this particular painting and at the same time an ahaaaaa... for me. And the gentleman? He ran off.

It was a weekend where everyone seemed to run in and out of my booth. Restless, no time, places to go, places to be. 'How are you?' I asked another visitor. 'Good', he said. 'Better now, after seeing your painting'. Georgia O'Keeffe said 'I have already settled it for myself so flattery and criticism go down the same drain and I am quite free'. Quotes are great and at the same time they might have been taken out of certain context that I would have liked to talk about. Grab and run. In and out.

It still felt good, even if it was for a moment.

Until next time,

Dienke

Coming up!