I'm Back

The past year and a half has probably been a time of grief, loss and depression for everyone. So it should come as no surprise that I've had my share too. In six months time I not only lost the love of my life, but I also lost my job. It felt like I had to learn how to breathe again.

Inspiration and art don't seem to thrive in a period of hardship and sadness, unlike numbness and depression. All in all, it took me over a year to get up and get back into the studio.

I've come a long way, but I'm slowly coming back. Below you can see one of my first new ceramic paintings. I hope you can enjoy it as much as I do.

Midas

He has a Golden Touch

Alles voor de Kunst

Het Rijk moet bijspringen, want gemeenten hebben niet genoeg geld voor de cultuursector, schreven de cultuurwethouders van de vier grootste steden op 17 mei in de Volkskrant.

Inmiddels heeft ook mijn favoriete galerie, Galerie Stam, in Amsterdam zijn deuren moeten sluiten. Dat doorgaan een lijdensweg zou worden, staat buiten kijf. “Er komt een recessie aan, zegt galeriehouder en kunstenaar Matthijs Stam, het eerste waar mensen dan mee stoppen is het kopen van kunst. Bijeenkomsten organiseren is er ook niet meer bij. In onze kleine ruimte sta je dan als haringen in een ton. Hartstikke gezellig, maar nu ondenkbaar. Ondertussen loopt de hoge huur gewoon door. Je hoeft geen zakelijk rekenwonder te zijn om te snappen dat dit einde oefening is.”

De financiële klappen als gevolg van Corona kunnen dit soort kleine ongesubsidieerde galeries, niet opvangen. Maar ook de grotere jongens hebben het moeilijk. Dat online galeries juist nu als paddestoelen uit de grond schieten is niet toevallig, maar er is zeker geen reden om te denken dat dit dè oplossing is. Een kunstenaar heeft immers baat bij een fysieke galerie waar publiek zijn of haar werk kan bekijken in een ruimte die zich daar voor leent en waarbij iemand aanwezig is om bezoekers ter plekke te informeren over het desbetreffende werk en de maker. Kunst moet je niet alleen raken, je moet het ook aan kunnen raken.

Ik las dat kunstenaars samen verantwoordelijk zijn voor 3,5% van ons bruto nationaal product. Toch is rechts nog steeds van mening dat kunst een linkse hobby is.

Gelukkig denkt niet iedereen er zo over. "[Kunst en cultuur] zijn onlosmakelijk verbonden met onze economie, werkgelegenheid, toerisme, integratie, onderwijs en zorg. Ze zijn onmisbaar in onze samenleving", aldus Touria Meliani, Said Kasmi, Robert van Asten, en Anke Klein (cultuurwethouders, van Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Den Haag en Utrecht).

Elke grote en kleine ondernemer in Nederland weet dat je moet investeren om geld te verdienen. Om die reden wordt er dan ook geld nog moeite gespaard om bedrijven die zwaar te lijden hebben onder de Corona-crisis financieel te helpen. Voor de kunst- en cultuursector is er een steunfonds van 300 miljoen euro opgericht. Maar er is veel meer geld nodig. Daarbij vraag ik mij af waarom er niet gezamenlijk wordt opgestaan om meteen ook die kaalslag in de kunst van zo’n tien jaar geleden plùs de btw-verhoging (van 6 naar 9%) terug te draaien. Want wat is een land zonder kunst?

Om met de woorden van Sir Peter Bazalgette te eindigen:

"Imagine society without the civilising influence of the arts and you'll have to strip out what is most pleasurable in life. [...] The inherent value of culture, its contribution to society, its symbiotic relationship with education and, yes, its economic power (but in that order) … this is what we call the holistic case for public support of arts and culture." 

Brighten up your days

While the sun is showing itself less and less, the wind is getting colder and the days are getting shorter, we are busy preparing for a new exciting, eye-catching autumn exhibition.

'Four artists, four techniques’, is an exhibition in which there is something to be found for everyone. Linocuts, bronze statues, oil paintings and ceramics; everything your heart desires.

Participating artists are: Jaap Hartman, Niqui Kommerkamp, Memo Tunali & Froukje Stam.

The exhibition will be officially opened on November 17 (doors open at 02:00 pm) and the official opening speech will be held around 3.30 pm. During the afternoon we will be serving light refreshments. We look forward to seeing you!

This exhibition will run through December 2019.

Opening hours: Wednesday to Saturday from 11 am to 5 pm. (Free entrance)

Invitation

You are cordially invited to join us for the official opening of the exhibition  at ‘Galerie Streetscape’ in Castricum.

The exhibition features paintings, collages, drawings lithos, etchings & sculptures. This is a great opportunity to meet the participating artists in person and engage in conversation while enjoying the art and listening to live music.

The exhibition comprises works by the following artists: Frans Hendriks, Anita Mizrahi, Edo Poland, Niqui Kommerkamp, Peter de Jong  & Marga Klumper.

The official opening will be held on Saturday, July 13 from 5 pm - 7 pm. The Exhibition will be on display from July 13 to August 16, 2019.

Address: Gallery Streetscape, Dorpsstraat 7, 1901 EH Castricum, Netherlands.
Opening hours: Friday - Sunday from 2 to 5 pm or by appointment.

What am I

Dutch
Keramist (m) -en beoefenaar v.d. pottenbakkerskunst, pottenbakker; (v) -miste -n en -s; ook ceramist
Pot·ten·bak·ker (de; m,v; meervoud: pottenbakkers) maker van potten.

English
Potter /ˈpɒtə/ noun: potter; plural noun: potters; a person who makes dishes, plates, and other objects from clay, usually by hand on a special wheel.

'Potter' seems to be a collective name for anyone who makes something out of clay. But there is an essential difference between a potter and a ceramist. A potter is someone who makes pots and other ceramic goods, while ceramist is a person who makes ceramic objects.

Although both groups can be successful in what they do and both work with clay, the comparison ends here.

According to the English, but also the Dutch dictionaries, a potter ('pottenbakker' in Dutch) is someone who makes pots, but most Dutch dictionaries mention the same under 'keramist' ('ceramist' in English).

It's kind of weird. If you tell a stranger that you are a sculptor, they will probably ask you what material you use. But almost no one would immediately assume that you work with clay. And so you use the word ceramist, but then they get confused with potter.
That is why I use the term 'ceramic sculptor' nowadays. I know it sounds a bit pretentious, but people understand this better and won't ask me to make them a series of plates again.

The funny thing is that I don't only make sculptures. For example, I am currently working on a series of boxes, in between I make small ceramic paintings and I have made a whole series of ceramic book covers.
To be honest, there is no better name for this than simply 'ceramist', but it is precisely that name that defines me - at least according to the Dutch dictionaries - as someone who makes pots.

Dutch art in France

From June 16 to September 16 2019, more than 50 Dutch artists will exhibit their work in Préporche, a commune in the Nièvre department in central France.

The exhibition organized by the "Kamergalerie" will consist of photos, paintings, drawings, sculptures and more.

Address: Atelier Préporché: Le Bourg 58360  Préporché Bourgogne

Opening hours: Sunday to Friday from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Spring is here - A new fresh art exhibition

Have you already completed your spring cleaning? Maybe it's time for something new to decorate your walls and cabinets with.

The annual group exhibition at Galerie Stam is the best opportunity to purchase something really beautiful to spice up your room. The exhibition will be officially opened on April 14 (doors open at 02:00 pm) and will run through June 2019.

About Galerie Atelier Stam
This gallery is known for the broad range of artists they represent and the wide variety of materials and genres in which they work.

TNT by Niqui Kommerkamp - ceramic box, 11 x 11 x 16 cm

Galerie Atelier Stam
Prinsengracht 356
1016 JA Amsterdam
The Netherlands

Opening hours: Wednesday to Saturday from 11 am to 5 pm. (Free entrance)

Christmas Art Sale 2018

During the weekend of December 15 and 16, a special exhibition will be held at WG Kunst in Amsterdam; more than 100 works of art by more than 100 artists are offered for 100 euros each. Drawings, paintings, graphics, sculptures, jewelry, ceramics, glassware and more. Free entrance.

Address: Marius van Bouwdijk Bastiaansestraat 28 Amsterdam

More information: wgkunst@wgkunst.nl  *  +31 (0)20 6161515

Touching Wood

I accidentally stumbled upon the website of the Italian sculptor Bruno Walpoth and fell in love with his work. His sculptures all of which look quite pensive and deep in thought, seem to invite the viewer to touch them.

Although these are life-sized human figures, you know they are not real. Some of these sculptures are simply too pale and they are often coated with semi-translucent paint so the wood grain remains partly visible and looking closer, you can see rougher parts where his chisel has worked the wood. But God, how stunningly beautiful they are!!

Obscure Art

Camera obscura basically means 'dark room', but in this case it refers to a simple device; a box with a simple tiny opening (a pinhole) with which photos can be taken, therefore also known as a 'pinhole camera'.
This device is far from a modern invention. Apart from Leonardo Da Vinci who describes it in his notebooks, even Aristotle understood the optical principle of the camera obscura.

In the 17th century it was a fairly popular aid for painters to help them to project an image. It was only from the first half of the 19th century that people began to use them in combination with photosensitive materials to take photographs. Nowadays it is mainly used in art projects or to entertain, either by building or by using one.

I've always wanted to build one myself. It took a while, but I think it was worth it.

@niquikommerkamp

What a relief

When a colleague asked me to build her a website to show off her work online, all I knew was that she made beautiful bronzes, paintings and scrolls. In her studio, however, I also discovered a good number of beautiful reliefs. And I fell in love immediately.

Relief by Victorine Loomans

Her work radiates vitality, movement and sensuality. Looking at it makes me happy and that is what art should do; generate emotion of any kind.

Do yourself a favor and visit her website here.

Invitation

New website

I know. An artist website is never finished, but I'm actually quite happy with it.
You're more than welcome to visit my site, so what are you waiting for? Click, click, click!

Untouchable

Bronze Shield - Ceramic wall object by Niqui - 48 x 25 x 10cm

Ceramics Exhibition

Google Maps

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Opening hours: Wednesday - Saturday from 11 am to 5 pm

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Kunstonderwijs in de Knel

"Kunstenaars en ontwerpers leveren onmisbare bijdragen aan maatschappelijke uitdagingen" 

Zowel de VVD als de ChristenUnie zijn van plan om flink te snijden in de kunstopleidingen. Op de website van de Willem de Kooning Academie geeft directeur Jeroen Chabot zijn reactie op die plannen.

Christmas Art Sale

During the weekend of December 17 and 18, a special exhibition will be held at WG Kunst in Amsterdam; more than 100 works of art by more than 100 artists are offered for 100 euros each. Drawings, paintings, graphics, sculptures, jewelry, ceramics, glassware and more. Free entrance.

Address: Marius van Bouwdijk Bastiaansestraat 28 Amsterdam (show on map)
More information: wgkunst@wgkunst.nl | +31 (0)20 6161515


In het weekend van 17 & 18 december 2016 zijn meer dan honderd kunstwerken van ruim honderd kunstenaars voor honderd euro per stuk te koop bij WG Kunst, Marius van Bouwdijk Bastiaansestraat 28 Amsterdam (Wilhelmina Gasthuisterrein).
Kopers kunnen het kunstwerk na betaling meteen meenemen. Op de vrijgekomen plek wordt direct een ander kunstwerk geplaatst. Zo is sprake van een telkens wisselende tentoonstelling.

Meer informatie: wgkunst@wgkunst.nl | www.wgkunst.nl | 020 6161515

Airheads

Exhibited at Gallery Stam from May 15 to July 16 2016. A series of half head vases with various oxides by Niqui Kommerkamp.

Open Ateliers Jordaan - art event

The Jordaan is a district in the center of Amsterdam. Every two years the artists working in this area, organize a ‘open studio event’, the Open Ateliers Jordaan.  This year this event takes place during the Pentecost weekend (May 14 to May 16). You are more than welcome to visit 66 participating  studios, meet the artists and buy their art directly without any intervention from a gallery. 

 

Artist: Patty Schilder.

Artist: Niqui Kommerkamp.

You can start at any studio; download the guide and the map of the studios. Or, if you like, you can even join a guided tour*. There will be daily lectures (in Dutch) and on Sunday afternoon there will be a Jazz concert. 

You can find me and Patty during this event at 'Keramiek Atelier Patty Schilder' at the Lijnbaansgracht 102. All participating studio's are open during this event from 12:00 pm to 06:00 pm.

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*)  Starting point of the Guided Tour: Lijnbaansgracht 102. Only on Sunday, May 15 at 12:30, 02:30 & 04:30 pm.

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