Viewing posts categorised under: Uncategorized

Monumental work II

07.08.17

In the previous post I showed you the almost-finished koi-carp pond and I mentioned painting the stairs from the other side! We're a month further and that project also has been succesfully finished! The basic plan was to make a piano-keyboard, using the actual steps, and create an optical illusion of a smooth piano...

Monumental work

IMG_8734bSince a couple of weeks I am creating a huge painting on an outside 30-step staircase. It is a commission and despite the incredible heat at the moment in the South of France, I love the project. I'm working with spray paint (so in a way this is grafitti art ☺), felt pen, acrylic paint, kilometers of masking tape and special varnish, to achieve an optical illusion. IMG_8426 It has been an incredible job to get it right, luckily I had help from the daughter and partner of the client! I suggested a fish pond, they chose Koi carps, I drew the basic lines and together we added the colours. Invisible in the video are the two footsteps that you have to stand on to see it 'exactly right' because from all other viewpoints it is just a niceIMG_8428 bunch of colours! Apart from a couple of details this first painting is finished. My 'assistants' are in New York again and I have started the next painting. It is going to be on the other side of the steps, to be seen from 2 footsteps on the lowest point of the stairs - looking up! Another great big challenge of which I will definitely post the result, as it will be extensively filmed - by a drone!!

Forces of Nature in Valbonne

PosterFdlN2015From 9 April - 19 April, the Artotheque of Valbonne presents the exhibition ‘Forces of Nature’! My friend Sally Ducrow and myself, we worked very hard to create a spectacular and colourful exhibition, and we both think it worked out really well!! It has all kinds of representations from the natural world and the forces behind it, imagined and for real - from tiny animals and plants, to outer space and DNA-ribbons, in watercolours  and acrylics, it's all there. Lots of original sculptures by Sally, made in wood and other unusual materials, full of creativity and imagination - made with love by the both of us... Note that the "Forces of Nature" are also great for children - who are of course most welcome!

The exhibition can be checked out in the ‘Salle St Esprit’ next to the Church in Valbonne. One of us is always present, every day from 10.30am to 6pm.

Two ceramisaurae

02

"Two artists invite you to discover unusual and poetic art, inspired by natural phenomena – and human interpretations of them. In this exhibition you will find black holes, nebulae, coloured DNA ribbons, plant life, animal life, humans... and even a river god - as well as an ever evolving artwork. To express her visions, Marina Kulik creates meandering and enticing shapes, bursting with beautiful colour harmonies, in watercolour and acrylics. The sculptures and 3-D collages of Sally Ducrow are mostly in wood, painted or partially charred, often combined with stone inclusions, metal, shell, glass ... This exhibition truly is a feast for the eyes!”

Article in ‘Building the French Dream’

Building the french dreamTo celebrate their 10-year anniversary, the construction company 'Finishing Touch' had a magazine published about the perks of living in the South of France - and their own building projects of course. 'Building the french dream' is a great read, very professionally made, the layout is beautiful and the subjects are interesting! Apart from a lot of interesting stories about lovely villages, like Théoule sur Mer, Valbonne, Lorgues and Mougins, there is an article about 'Le Hangar', the art center where I teach live drawing and watercolour painting and also there are interviews with a diverse range of people who live and work in the area. And one of them is yours truly! I am proud just to be included, but the great news is also that the magazine is distributed in high numbers in France, Scandinavia as well as the Benelux. All in all a wonderful opportunity to be introduced to new people... The paintings in the left are now in Kopenhagen, the one in the middle is now finished and belongs to 'Ever Evolving', just like the one on the right. More about that very soon!

58 - Marina

Exhibition in KopenHagen

From 4 May - 1 July, my work will be exhibited in the famous Danish Design House Illums Bolighus in Kopenhagen. Together with 3 other artists from Gallery Oscar I will show paintings. Big Rose, Bigger Rose (in the making at this moment) and maybe even 'Biggest Rose' will be shown, as well as silk screen prints, Cells and Fingerprints... The Vernissage will take place on Saturday 4 May and before that I will definitely come back to you with more info! I am delighted to be part of the GO-crowd!

Big Rose in print

Remember the aquarelle 'Big Rose' that was chosen as design for the 'Stop Aids Now' Artbag of 2012? The bag will hit the shops in October, and it will only cost 5 €. I will regularly update you  from this space, for instance about the prototype that I now have in my possession ☺ But first a spin off of this project: high quality silk screen prints, numbered and signed by yours truly will soon be available! My new number one favourite printer Cristian de Bruijne from Cristian de Bruijne Zeefdruk  has worked very hard to create a colourful, strong reproduction of the image. And that has worked out! As he says himself: "The reason of my enthusiasm is that Marina gave me free reign. This resulted in a reproduction that is as beautiful as it can possibly be. With this way of working I am at my best - it was a super job in all respects!" The prints will be presented on the 'Wonder and Make a Wish' expo (see previous post)...

Exhibition ‘Wonder and Make a Wish’

 FOR IMEDIATE RELEASE “Wonder and Make a wish” From 14 – 16 September 2012 the exhibition ‘Wonder and Make a wish’ will take place in Golfe Juan, featuring new work by five Dutch artists based in the Côte d’Azur. The artists will donate 10% of every sold work to the charity ‘Make-A-Wish’, which will be introduced in the Côte d’Azur during the exhibition. Galerie Oscar is very pleased to announce a group exhibition of Dutch artists, living and working in the Côte d’Azur; Marina Kulik, Ineke Velsink,  Thérèse Steinmetz, Rosalind Suurland and Elmer de Haas.  Through paintings, photography, sculptures and jewelry, the ‘Wonder and Make a Wish’ exhibition expresses the crucial ingredient in creativity and growth, the ever wondering approach to the existence. The artists will be donating 10% of their proceeds to the new charity, “Make a wish”, which will be hereby introduced in Côte d’Azur. The five featuring artists are still wondering and facilitating the same possibility to the visitors. Their artworks make us look around with wondering eyes, asking questions and observing without judgment. Their works convey the often lost sensation of believing that everything and anything is possible. Children can easily imagine what adults disregard as impossible. Children wonder and wish for miracles until we convince them to become realistic and stop dreaming. “Wonder and make a wish” exhibition connects us with the lost innocence and invites us to start looking around with wonder-eyes. About the artists: Marina Kulik combines creativity and ‘the artist life’ with intelligence and science. Her work shows a continuous, poetic wonder about the mystery of life. This is expressed in her subjects: expressive yet delicate portraits on one side and on the other hand lyric abstracts, originating from nature in her 'MCRose' series and emerging towards a microscopic viewpoint in 'MyDNA'. Marina is constantly developing and researching ideas, always seeking to truly understand the subject, looking for mastery and originality. Ineke Velsink works miracles with bronze and hard stones such as various kinds of marble. Her statues have a wondering and spiritual undertone and her women balance between the figurative and the abstract. Ineke’s “everything is possible” approach makes it possible to observe that what at first appears as abstract, reveals itself as being a well-measured composition. The statues are therefore surprising the viewer by enhancing a different impression than he/she got at first sight. Rosalind Suurland, former ice show skater, always designed and manufactured the show apparel.  With her special creations of necklaces, in gold, silver, silk and pearls, Rosalind has found her new passion and stage and opportunity to translate her playfulness and creativity from performing on ice to creating dream alike jewelry. Her designs are charming and artistic, and she has made her name in the world of jewelry by creating only one unique copy of each piece, executed in a different style. Thérèse Steinmetz takes the viewer  to another world, a world of peace, serenity and beauty with her dream alike 'creatures feminines' (fairytale female creatures). During the first exposition in the Hague in 1989 Lambert Monet (a direct descendant of the French painter) discovered Thérèse’s work and introduced her to several foreign galleries. A highlight was the great solo exhibition in New York at the famous Benedetti-Gallery (1993). Thérèse’s work was awarded many times, among them the ‘Medaille d'or’ of the biennale of Lyon 2002 and the great prize of Italy 2002 with expositions in Rome, Venice and Florence. Elmer R. de Haas, Dutch photographer/film director, lives and works in Amsterdam. His work is often characterized as:  “Work that embodies great emotional depth, with a sensitive eye for composition and storytelling”. His uncommissioned work is collected by a fast growing international clientele in Zurich, Berlin and London. At present he exhibits in his own studio/gallery in Amsterdam and  the ‘Wonder and Make a Wish’ exhibition shows his ‘look beyond the reality’ works. About the charity: ‘Make-A-Wish’ is a worldwide charity organization which grants the wishes of children with life-threatening medical conditions to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy. The organization Make-A-Wish has a representation in Paris since 2003 and is now in the process of setting up an organization for the South of France and Lille. Guests: Highly interesting international speakers and guests, among others, Peter van Santen, Honorary Consul of the Netherlands in Nice and an official representation of ‘Make-A-Wish’ France. Setting: Exquisite private villa, overlooking the the riviera coast, a purposefully designed scenario for wondering and dreaming. Music: Live lounge music by jazz singer Anna Feichenfeldt and pianist Ruby Lemm. Dates: September 14-16, 2012,  15.00-19.00 Opening reception: September 14, 15.00 - 19.00 For more information Emilie Janda at +33669396881 or ej@galerieoscar.com

Now represented by Galerie Oscar!

From August 1st 2012 onwards artist Marina Kulik will be represented by Galerie Oscar in Nice

Galerie Oscar is a gallery for contemporary art, with an inventive approach and a great eye for original art from emerging international artists.  For Marina it means that her artwork will be promoted on a broader international basis:

“I am very happy with this development! After my successful exhibition in Galerie Oscar in Nice, I kept in touch with them because especially curator Emilie Janda is a great sparring partner and an inspiring person! Now that they actually represent me I can always count on their input and feedback - and of course they take a lot of administrative work,  but also marketing and publicity, from my hands. Time that I can now spend on painting! And on developing new ideas and projects...”

Emilie Janda from Galerie Oscar will focus on further development of Marina's abstract projects and on international marketing of the full length 'informal portraits'.

“From the moment I saw Marina Kulik’s paintings during 'Franchement Art' in Villefranche, I was attracted to her colourful and original  'MyDNA' series, the fingerprints and serpentines. When Marina exhibited with Galerie Oscar, I was introduced to her 'McRoses' and I immediately recognized the potential in her work. This was proven right after the exhibition when 'Big Rose' was chosen by the Dutch AIDS fund to be printed on their famous Artbag. Marina's full length (and other) portraits are already well known in French and Dutch circles and we are going to make sure they get the attention they deserve in other countries too, starting with the Scandinavian art market. We are delighted to welcome Marina Kulik in our midst."

For new and existing collectors of Marina's work this is good news! There will be a higher level of publicity and Marina’s work will become an even better investment.  Galerie Oscar can be contacted for additional information and services. info@galerieoscar.com www.galerieoscar.com

Galerie Oscar 51 Avenue de Mont Alban 06300 Nice

Emilie Janda +33669396881

Atelier News: a reconstruction portrait part 3

While happily painting Chris's portrait, I have now as extra input the portrait of his daughter Lucie. I painted that a couple of years ago, after meeting her extensively. A 'normal' portrait so to say, no reconstructing necessary! She has light hair and I didn't think she and her dad were very much alike (the only reason I wanted a photograph of her portrait alongside Chris's painting was to make sure the two pictures look good together as they will hang next to each other).

But as it turns out there is so much resemblance! It is amazing what you see when you truly dive into another person... The mouth, the look in their eyes, the stillness around them.

They are beautiful, the little girl and her dad.

I have finished the basic structure and colours of his face (including beard shadow and very thick eyebrows) and worked hard on the shirt (always love doing the fabric and patterns).

To do: a couple of details in his face then his fantastic blue-black, curly, thick hair  and last but not least - the background. All with the other painting in mind!

Soon I'll present the finished painting...

Atelier News: a reconstruction part 2

Reconstruction portraits are portraits that are made without the possibility of a life session. Based on pictures and descriptions, with a lot of interpretation and going back to the client "is this the colour of his/her eyes" etc...

There's a bit of detective work and the end result is often based on that, combined with pictures and sketches. To me, a great aspect of these reconstructions is that I am limited to working from photo's, and I like limits. Also lovely is the fact that you are creating a memory and a monument. Working from photo's is not at all bad by the way: they are often spontaneous, they are very patient, they don't move and they are strictly two-dimensional.

After a couple of talks, where we determined his pose, and sketches for the colours (the one shown here I made to get a feel for his contrast (he's very dark haired with a light skin) of Chris, who passed away 15 years ago, on a very young age, I have now started the first washes of the actual aquarelle: