Darkness in Pompano Beach

Last night I received the confirmation that my 3 entries are juried into the group show "Darkness" at the Rossetti Fine Art Gallery in Pompano Beach. 

Pretty Pretty Flower

Artists were encouraged to enter works with dark themes and imagery. In other words for the artists to tap into their darker side. I chose to stay with one of my favorite subjects - children - and painted 3 fictional portraits (12" x 12"), using ink, charcoal and 4 colours of Acrylics (White, Red, Grey and Payne's Grey). I did not feel that full colour would do justice to the subjects and chose to stick with a limited palette.

I was aiming for a slightly subtle level of darkness and I was surprised that it was actually hard to restrain myself from going into a"SAW" kind of blood filled darkness, while setting up the portraits.

I am really pleased with the result and of course that I am juried in. The exposition will be open for public October 24th and the opening reception will take place on Thursday 27th from 8 pm - 10 pm at Rossetti Fine Art Gallery in Pompano Beach.

Zebra I Presume

Currently I am working on a new set of paintings which will be different from what I have been painting lately. I wanted to step away from the pouts and nudes, and explore different subjects in my paintings. 

The first painting, which I finished today, is about perception. Again the photo I took does not do justice to the colors at all, but it gives you some impression.

This painting - I named it "Zebra I Presume" - is in acrylics, ink and graphite, and is 36 x 36".

Mona, Mona, Mona.....

Several weeks ago I received an invitation from MANO Fine Art to create my interpretation of one of the world's most famous paintings: The Mona Lisa.

Talk about a creative challenge and a very inspiring one indeed for me. Leonardo da Vinci was the artist that wanted me to paint as a little child. My father came home with a book about Da Vinci's work and I was in awe with every picture in that book. By the time my father sat down to look in the book himself, my little fingerprints were all over every page.

I made a triptych (3 canvasses of 12x12") like a little story board and put Mona Lisa in a different background and not as the pretty little model with the mysterious smile, but an active young woman . I named the triptych "Mona Lisa Rules".

And here is my little teaser for this exposition: a small strip of one of the canvasses.

 

If you want to see the rest of this painting and all the other interpretations, you should come to

MANO Fine Art Project Space

4225 SW 75 Avenue

Miami, FL

Opening Reception will be on Saturday,  September 17 · 7:00pm - 10:00pm.

Visit the facebook page for more information. 

Out of Context

Galerie Jenner in Fort Lauderdale came up with another creative idea for a show: Buy a paint-by-numbers-kit and get inspired. Anything goes as long as it is OUT OF CONTEXT! 

So a couple of weeks ago I went to the art supply store and stood in front of all the "paint-by-numbers-kits" section, trying to figure out which one to choose and what to do with it.

Anyway, I choose the kit numbered "PJS49" and that is also the title of the painting.

I worked with the subject and let myself be inspired by this kit. 

It was for me a complete out of context experience and I had a lot of fun with it and I think that it shows in this work. For now I only show you a little piece of the whole painting (30 x 40").

If you want to see the whole painting and all the other creations based on painting-by-numbers-kits, come to Galerie Jenner on Saturday October 15th.

The Art of T-shirt

 

All last week I worked on 2 T-shirts for the "Art of t-shirt" exposition at the Sol Gallery in Miami Beach. Last Sunday I was finally able to deliver the t-shirts at the gallery and yesterday I received the email that my work was accepted. Even better.... so short notice and they even added my name on the flyer/poster.

The opening reception will be Friday July 1 and it includes life music by Uprooted Reggae Fusion Band and a screen printing demonstration and will be in honor of two charities in humanitarian causes:

So-Me, which is a clothing line aimed at intellectualizing fashion and taking a stand against all intolerance through fashion. 

No More Tears, a not-for-profit organization that rescues victims of domestic violence.

The exposition will be until July 31st.

And below a glimpse of one of the t-shirts I made for this show. I made a painting on canvas with acrylics, which was stitched (Thank you Katja!) to the t-shirt. I painted lines from the canvas on the shirt to connect the art with the t-shirt. The title is "Just Because".

So join me on July 1, 2011 at Sol Gallery at the CANDO Arts Co–op: 309 23rd St. Miami Beach, Fl 33139 (one block west of Collins Ave.)at 7.00 pm.

Life is Art

Life Is Art is a south-Florida based non-profit corporation founded in January of 2009. Their goal is to help elevate the south Florida arts scene to a level comparable with other international artistic cities, such as New York and Paris. They do this primarily through the production of arts events: Art Shows, Fairs, Parties, Showcases, Networkers, Seminars, Workshops and more targeted at supporting south Florida artists and arts professionals. They provide opportunities for artists to grow and share their work, as well as learn about the business of being an artist and how to better make a living at what they love.

On June 18, 2011 the organization "Life is Art" will hold their fundraising party and it will be a night filled with art, music, fashion, performances and even free drinks. Also there will be a raffle for which I made a small painting (6 x 18 inch).

I made it in Acrylics and gold leaf and I called it "Life is Art".

And I apologize as this is not a great picture of the painting.... 

So if you are in Miami (or in the neighborhood) on June the 18th and want to support the arts come to the Surfcomber in South Beach, have a great time and don't forget to buy raffle tickets. You might end up with a real Monique Lassooij painting...

For more information go to: http://www.lifeisartfest.org/2011/05/28/the-big-fundraising-party-june-18-2011/

This is so funny....

This is one of the auditions at "Britain got Talent." 

Please turn up the volume a bit... and wait for the silence...

(Ze Hitman and I could not stop laughing)