January 2024

"Creation"

Mixed media on canvas; 30x40 cm; 2023

This very special piece is a memory and tribute to the first time I shared my art in public and a collaborative creation moment by inviting the audience to join in on the process.

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The inspiration and story behind the art

How it started

In April 2023 I exhibited my art for the first time. It was in one of my favorite clubs in Berlin, Sisyphos, known for its colorful & creative atmosphere and open-minded visitors.
I invited anyone who passed by to "make a mark" on a blank canvas, using any of the available colors & tools - brushes, spatulas, sponges...

Where it ended... & started again

The result of this co-creation experiment was the painting you see here. It was thrilling to see the visitors so engaged & participating in co-creating a new piece of art. In hindsight, next time I will probably not write anything on the canvas.
I decided to create a new painting on top of this one, to preserve the memory.

How I continued & which materials I used

Textured base

Inspired by one of my existing paintings, Spring, which was created in a similar way, I added a thick layer of texture on top of the existing underlying painting. To spark my creativity, I shifted the paste around and made organic-looking patterns until I was happy with the base.

Acrylic ink for flowy colors

I love using acrylic inks on top of a textured base. Their high-coverage combined with high-flow enables me to experiment and let the paint flow around the texture to see what kind of organic pattern the colors create.

Struggles & learnings

Chaotic composition

It took me 7 months of on-and-off work to finally finish this painting. The biggest challenge I had was bringing balance to it. With such wild textures and colors, it was difficult to retroactively come up with a composition that pulls all of the chaos together. I spent multiple hours just staring at the painting, hoping to figure out what it "needs" and how I can tie all the chaotic elements into a cohesive composition.

Finished painting

I decided that some of the textured areas were a bit too distracting and I ended up covering them up with paint (e.g. the bottom left corner). This allowed me to see more patterns and forms, which I chose to highlight instead. One of my favorite moments was when I discovered how all the elements fit together - the spiral galaxies, the evolution of colors from dark to light & the hand print all give tribute to the origins of this painting - the moment of co-creation at my first exhibition.