Turkish

My ricecarpet materials 

Carpet in the middle is based on small persian rug at home

Evil Eyes

Ricecarpet "Kashan"

Detail of ricecarpet "Kashan" made with rice, beans, lentils, peas and sunflowerseeds

From the 17th of May I will be in a group-exhibition with the theme 'Turkish' in Veldhoven (NL). Next to my silkscreen prints 'In Holland stands a house', I will exhibited ricecarpets I made on location.
I spend two days making the carpets and had to restore the big one all ready. Because the theme is 'Turkish' I based all my carpets on persian rugs.

The biggest carpet is named "Kashan". It is based on a quite common theme in persian rugs, the tree of life.
The tree of life is an interesting motif, pattern or theme. On Wikipedia: The concept of a tree of life has been used in biology, religion, philosophy, and mythology. A tree of life is a common motif in various world theologies, mythologies, and philosophies. It alludes to the interconnection of all life on our planet and serves as a metaphor for common descent in the evolutionary sense. The term tree of life may also be used as a synonym for sacred tree.*
So it is a concept that can be recognized by many. I surrounded the tree with exotic birds that could also be seen as phoenixes.

The other carpets I based on a small carpet we have at home and Turkish Evil Eyes, which we keep calling Good Luck Eyes in Dutch...


* Wikipedia about Tree of Life
** For more see www.sabinebolk.nl  "Voorproefje op de Expo "Turks"" and "Opening expo "Turks" 17 mei in De Kunstpraktijk"

Was ist ist, was nicht ist ist möglich

Ricecarpet 'Windrose', slide by Koen de Wit

Books that were the inspiration for these works*

For the group-exhibition 'Was ist ist, was nicht ist ist möglich' at Artist Studiospace Rosa in Breda (NL) I made a wallpaper installation, a ricecarpet and a rice-installation. The works of rice are inspired by and based on the books I'm reading to inform me for my journey to Batik in October.

In the inside cover of the book "Bloemen van het heelal, De kleurrijke wereld van de textiel op Java"* are these beautiful drawings of Batik patterns. The book saids the patterns are from Grěsik and were drawn in 1822. I used one for my ricecarpet 'Windrose' on the floor at Rosa.
The book starts explaining Batik using a windrose. Every direction of the wind has a different colour and therefor a different meaning.  Clockwise the colours also symbolize day & night and life & death, the cycle of life. Like a rotating sun.
It starts with blue-ish black, the night and death, continuing to white. The beginning, twilight. The light red is the morning, the sunset, the beginning of young life. The bright red is maturity, the middle, adulthood.  Orange is when the sun is at its highest point in the sky. Fruits and seeds are getting ripe. With yellow its harvest time. Reap what you sow. With green or purple the night is coming, its twilight again. Grey-ish or very dark blue is near the beginning, or ending.

Compilation wallpaper installation "The journey of Batik"**

Ricecarpet 'Windrose' at Rosa in Breda (NL)

On the left "Rice from Silver bowls", right ricecarpet "Windrose"

Rosa is located in an old school building. Very inspiring and beautiful. The lucky artists working there have studios floating in daylight with enviable high ceilings. Among all this greatness it was difficult to find an location to make a work that stands out, so I chose the hallway for my wallpaper and the toilet block for my ricecarpet. In the toilet block were 4 sinks. I was working on how to make carpets, without people putting their hands in them, so I decided to fill every sink with a different types of rice. The different types of rice have different colours, black, red, white and saffron, that match perfectly with the windrose-explanation of Batik.  The novel "Rijst uit zilveren schalen" inspired me for the title. The title, translated "Rice from Silver bowls", is an expression to explain the importance of food. No matter how sad life gets or how poor you are, you should always serve your rice in Silver bowls.
Visitors really enjoyed the 'bowls' with rice, putting their hands in and pouring it, making that beautiful sound. However, it maybe help getting their hands from my work, instead someone danced barefoot in my carpet on the opening night...

* "Bloemen van het heelal, De kleurrijke wereld van de textiel op Java" by Alit Veldhuisen-Djajasoebrata & "Rijst uit zilveren schalen" by Alice M. Ekert-Rotholz
** Blogpost about the wallpaper installation 'The journey to Batik'

The journey of Batik

Making a wallpaper installation for the exhibition “Was ist ist, was nicht ist ist möglich” of Rosa.
The work will be shown during the Open Ateliers Breda (open studio route) on 13 & 14 June at Overakkerstraat 192.

In Holland Stands A House*

This year I started to learn silk screen printing. With this technique you build up an image or pattern layer for layer. It was a very popular technique for printing patterns on fabrics and wall paper and is therefor a very inspiring technique to learn.

I wanted to learn it for many years, but was out of luck on the Art Academy. In Breda we have this great graphic Center called 'RAAF'. With my grant I'm able to go there weekly to really experiment with it and the people working there and running the place are wonderful!

My first serie of prints are being exhibited from 17 May till 1 July at de Kunstpraktijk in Veldhoven (NL). This print is made out of 3 layers, a background with watercolour and two silk screen layers. The print is a combination of patterns inspired by Delftware and Batik. 

When I was little I thought every household would have a house filled with things from the Netherlands and Indonesia, like our house. It felt very logical to me, my family had no direct link to Indonesia, the things in our house where souvenirs from the many travels my grandparents made, but I thought with our shared history everyone would have a link with Indonesia.

The print shows terraced houses, which I think is very Dutch. The houses are filled with flowers and birds from Batiks. The terraced houses are surrounded with patterns from Delftware, like the very popular and well-known 'Boerenbont' **("Boer" means farmer and "bont" refers to a mixture of colors).

In Holland stands a house, at least how I imagine them to be.

* Dutch children song "In Holland staat een huis"
** Newer related blogpost "What kind of Boerenbont are you?"

The Don’t Das Ding pattern-pattern-pattern-pattern costume

Every costume was made specifically for every Don't Das Ding member*

During the 'Grass' performance

Beginning of this year a group of musicians, poets, writers, performers and artists, including me, for the Don’t Das Ding Ensemble. Frontman Pisteffo brought us together on stage and in his radioshow Klokkespijs on Radio Centraal.

For our ensemble I made these costumes with the pattern-pattern-pattern-pattern philosophy**.

Dirk, Fronk and Koen *

Stealing a kiss before the show

The pattern I made for our Don’t Das Ding blouses and t-shirts is based on the different places we performed, stayed the night (like Pistoffo’s house De Aap/‘The Monkey”) and went on air.
The floor of Café La Campine were we joined in with “Le sacre du printemps / Krisis!” by Radio Centraal. The colours of the ‘crisis caravan’ in which we made a tribute to Tracy live on air. The Radio Centraal studio with its peeled of walls, curtains in The Monkey and my apple shaped riceccarpet I made in theater Het Appeltje (“The Apple”).

Costume for Fronk with ï

The crisis caravan

Curtains at The Monkey

Like the radioshow Klokkespijs, a mix between soundscape, radio play, interview, news, personal and the main guest, the Don’t Das Ding Ensemble is a gathering of disciplines. And like the pattern is based on different sources, it will still form a a harmonious entirety.

* Photos by Dirk Cornelis
** See previous blog post "Pattern-pattern-pattern-pattern"

Pattern-pattern-pattern-pattern

During my Fonds Live presentation one thing that was discussed was that my work was more focussed on patterns and that patterns were the subject in my new work.
Before patterns had mainly a decorative function.
To develop this progress in my work I’m adding and developing my Pattern-pattern-pattern-pattern serie (PPPP).
How far can you go with a pattern? How comfortable is a room when everything in that room is patterned the same, the wall paper, the curtains, the furniture, the tableware even the clothing you are wearing?
A Pattern-pattern-pattern-pattern room is a room that in its entirety, filled with the same pattern.

The first works with this theme I made in 2008. A watercolour and diorama (for a groupsexhibition at Villa Ockenburgh in Den Haag, NL).

In the beginning of this year I did a performance during “The sleepless night” by Vanuit Bed using PPPP.
While the song “The Artist” by Daniel Johnston was playing, I ‘woke’ up on stage in a white room which I turned into a patterned one, including myself.

At the moment I’m working on a silkscreen printed wall paper and outfits for Don’t Das Ding using the PPPP theme.
The repeating and re-using of a pattern is of course very important in Batik. Every pattern is a symbol and learning its meaning is a study towards the Pattern-pattern-pattern-pattern world I’m trying to create.
Eventually I would like to turn a room, or better a house, into a Pattern-pattern-pattern-pattern.

To Indonesia

In October I go to Indonesia. My plan is to learn how to make Batik. I go for one month to find a teacher. After this journey I hope to return to Indonesia and study the Batik art longer. On my blog you can read about my plans, preparations, inspirations and the journey to Batik!

My dream is made possibly by het Fonds BKVB