Visitors in the studio?

Excerpt from my sketchbook

I’m always surprised by what happens when artist friends or friends who know a lot about art come to my studio. I take away a different insight from every visit, because each visitor focuses on something different.

Once, someone told me that my studio was much too small and that I needed significantly more space to truly express myself. That wasn’t exactly news to me. At the time, I was working in the attic and had no way to hang my paintings. But hearing this from someone else gave me important external validation and the impetus to take action. I looked for new studio.

During another visit, my artwork took center stage, and we talked a lot about materials. My mixed-media works and collage series served as the starting point. It was very enriching to see how my work inspired another artist and how that inspiration was fed back to me in the form of new ideas. Just like a game of ping-pong.

When I, in turn, paid a visit to an artist friend of mine, the conversation turned to interior design. The furniture, textiles, and wallpaper there brought to light our shared passion for patterns and art history.

Immediately after that visit, we each stretched a new canvas at home and started working.