The story of the painting "Eva-Brazil"

 

Introduction

Hi my name is Nicole Waasdorp (NiWa) born in 1966, Eindhoven in the Netherlands, and I feel art.

I sell one work. Titled " Eva Brazil" 

This work is special for several reasons.

• One, it is very beautiful and though I'm the maker and should humble I am, if I say it is beautiful because it is.
• I know and feel quality straight away and therefore I sell it for this price 
• This work became my recognition being an artist by another artist who I respect and is respected
• The paint is created by myself, by mixing real pigments, therefore it has this vibrant colour palette 
• There is an dept inside this work that can only come from deep knowledge of anatomy 
• There is a poetry inside this work that can only come from true feelings 

I made lots of works but there was always an idea in me that I shouldn't make art for money. I had the feeling it would corrupt my work. And it often does, when I see works of artists, I can pick out directly who is doing it for the money and who from inside. 

However now I'm selling a work because it's Art and it should be with someone who knows. And live- and love with the work. Someone who appreciates.

To the buyer I wish to explain the story of this work. The reason is that Art is storytelling. Further I guess it's very nice to have an Art work for a quarter million and know how it is made, what kind of paint and what it means for the artist.

And who is the artist. 

The average Art dealer/collector is not interested in the artist. Only if they are famous or just to put the painting on the wall for oh's and ah's and desire to know as little possible.

But I want to sell it to someone who is interested in all facets of the painting. 

So here the the story. To frame the story directly linked to the work, I must first give you the story of the artist.

How this artist feel it. This is necessary to capsulate the whole.

 

So we go back a few decades for this, back in time. 

I was always drawing, creating as a child and when 15 dad asks: "What you are going to become?" I replied: "I want to be a drawing teacher" he said: " nah, no good, no money in this. Better find a profession that makes you capable of making your own money, so you not have to depend on a husband" (very modern and this from a very traditional family man).

So I choose physical therapy. No other reasons than that it was sport related, that I could travel with this profession plus it didn't require maths and science (in which I did not excell)

I became a physio. Did it in 4 years. Cum laude for the verbal exam.

At my second physio practice training, I worked in a practic where they had Artwork in each treatment room. The owner, a nice guy, loved Art and classical music.

One day, whilst giving a treatment to a patient, I saw myself reflected in the glass frame of the painting and in a flash I thought: I'm on the wrong side. I need to be at the otherside, the side of the Art. 

It was clear. 

I had to choose and sacrifice (and I didn't knew how much back then, but life showed me later).

My good father offered me that time the grocery shop in Haarlem, the Netherlands, plus two houses connected, all in tip top shape (done by his own hands in free time), plus a car.

In the connected house was a small beautiful shop and I could have my practice there as well.

All so good hearted and well planned by dad who knew the cunning world and wished he could care for me, his princess.

But I refused it all. First thing in myself I felt was: that I didn't wanted to take the easy way, I wanted to make it myself, not being a spoiled person.

I told him, ¨thank you but I'm soon graduated physio and go to Amsterdam" I broke his heart. 

But I had to go my own way.

He sold the properties and I sold my - just new - self eatned - costume made - sinker surfboard and my sails (I was semi-professional that time, and could have made a living with surf competitions all over the world). 

Then graduated and worked short term as a temp, for a physiotherapy practitioner who had a holiday and received a nice amount of money for this.

And went to France for grape picking inspired by the book from the writer: A. den Doolaard, "de druiven plukkers". (The grapepickers)

I found the grapepicking work via an add in NL, and went to the south of France near Lyon for a life-changing travel. It was a very traditional winery and they treated us, the workers, very good. And it was a bit like the book.

The crew was half French and the other part Dutch. I worked with the Dutch people and we had conversations like: "what you REALLY want to do with your life?" I said: "Art" . So the guy (Pieter his name) said: " go DO IT" I agreed of course.

I went after this grape picking (which was an amazing experience) with my earned money to Pisa, Florence and Corsica and then to Amsterdam to create a portfolio for the Academy of Arts. I noticed that in Italy art is part of life. And beautiful things, clothes, places, Art, history is all appreciative. 

So I did created a portfolio.

I went to musea's, streets, forests all to draw, painted and got a pile. I remember that after "the surrender to Art call" so to speak, I dreamed in colours, every night colours only ...sort of abstract paintings. 

 

 

 

Creating the portfolio for admitting exams for the Art school. 

Then I found announcements for 2 workshops in the van Gogh museum.

The Museum had it's atelier at the basement that time (later they made a souvenir shop from this space).

I applied and got a postcard from our teacher-his own Artcard - it was the artist Nicolas Dings. Message: okay you can do the both workshops.

The workshops were led by artists Nicolas Dings and Janneke Tangelder. 

I emerged. Very happy.

First workshop week was teaching us mixed media and pigments; making one's own paint. 

Second week we had a model. Eva. From Brazil. Very beautiful, experienced poser, and super relaxed model. 

Drawings with charcoal. Ink. Later my own mixed paint. The painting itself went very quick. As in a trance. 

Having physio as a base is a good base for model painting because I have a deep knowledge of muscles and the whole. I was during the exam anatomy amongst the ones with the highest marks. This because I had studied all the muscles by making drawings and had made my own anatomy book. 

We went also with our physio school several times to the mortuary where you see the muscles in real. I'm sure that painters in the past went through such procedures to understand the body. To get profound understanding of anatomy.

The painting ' Eva-Brazil' I sell after keeping it for 30+ years - is the painting that Acknowledged me in to the Art world. . 

This is how it went. The moment that made me change identity from wanting to be in art - to be an Artist:

At the end of this last week, when the model painting workshop at the van Gogh museum atelier was finished, we sat down with the whole group had a wine and listened to a talk by our teacher, artist Nicolas Dings. 

After the 'thank you's and great you were all attending', he held up one of my black and white ink drawings of the model and said: "ladies and gentlemen this is a nice drawing"...And then he held out my painting Eva-Brazil and stated: 

"and this is Art".

That was like a bomb for me. 

Before going to the Art academy I was free no need for their diploma etc.

 I got into the HKU Autonomous Art elected amongst 20 other students from over 500 applicants

When I heard I was admitted as a student in the department Autonomous Art, I was so extremely happy. I cannot explain this feeling. 

So I became a full time student in HKU - Utrecht and living in Amsterdam I travelled by train daily, with pleasure.

 The years that followed were happy years. Being amongst the students who were into the same dimension, was a paradise.

The first two years The school offers all Art forms.

Drawing, sculpture wood, metal, mixed media, painting, photography, graphic (lino, etching, printing), experiment, ceramic, computer, culture.

I was like a sponge. I was here to learn all ready, no boundaries, I had no fear for the teachers. Most teachers understood my work. The only problem I had was with the dogmatic painting teacher who allowed us no freedom. I stopped painting that time.

My family in the meantime, thought I was crazy to leave a well paying profession and so many opportunities to go into a poverty existance.. 

I also was greatfull for the 2 hours a week of Art history - Culture by mr. Guus Rekers. Speaking about so many things in life and telling tales of the Bhagavad-gītā and so much more.

The second year of HKU, Mr. Rekers introduced me to miss Anne de Vilder, choreographer of performance art. She worked with the inspiration of the work of Mrs Pina Bausch where the dancers co-create. I was asked to be part of the collective and we became a happy family. We made two pieces with music of Jacques Brel and they were shown to the school and for outside public as well.

The third year I was admitted to go on, and the procedure was that the students are separate from many art forms and have an atelier. This meant as well that the students had to choose a discipline.

Only one discipline:  painter, sculpturer or graphic designer.

 

This was and is not how I see Art. 

 

For me, Autonomous Art is the ultimate freedom.

 

I was into sculpture, mixed media, collage, performance, poetry, photography, installation, conceptual, graphic, mono prints.

Noone else could - can tell me how I should be.

What to make.

When, how, etc. 

My big inspirator, Pablo Picasso was into many Art forms. And show it is possible to work in more than one Art discipline.

I was deep in performance and there would be no space for this too.

I left the Art school. Anne de Vilder too.

I never wanted to make a living from my art. I didn't need their diploma.

So I went in search of other work

Outside life was going to be the performance I decided. 

Direct after leaving the HKU, I took my Cannon AE1 and left to Lissabon and made social photography in black and white. I developed photos too myself.

I was into social black and white photography. My inspiration was a book that I had from a photographer who did black and white photography in New York and photo series of people in their houses in one street. 

Life was never the same

 First years worked as waitress for an agency in all the Amsterdam 5 *hotels. I got married and 5 years later divorced and I became a single mother. Poverty, loneliness and sadness were my years. An apartment of 30 square meters without garden nor balcony, 3 rd floor. A nobody. When one has money one cannot maintain a social life. When no money no dinners to trown. The only thing that kept me going was that I knew my Art. 

I never ceased with Art. There was always something going on inside. 

Together with my daughter I came back into Graphic art. Mono printing. And because I am a Superfood fan I had access to plant pigments. Yellow: curcuma. Brown: cacao. Green: spirulina. Purple: bramble berry.

Catalunya 

A time hectic, time came when we were moving. We had reasons. Escape the school system where my daughter was far from thriving to put it mildly.

In the beginning I was not able to see anything beautiful anymore because stress. However in Nature everything is Art and finally I feel space.

Nowadays I am into ceramics (busts), collage, land art, haute couture hand made bags.

I sold one time a work in my life It was the drawing that Nicolas Dings said to the group: ,"this is a nice drawing" 

I had in total 2 exhibitions. 

Abandoned the whole because survival. 

But know I'm in peace living of-the-grid present in nature. Poetry came back. 

Sell only one work. 

Price Eva Brazil: 250.000 Euro

Only to someone who really apreciates.