New solo showcase of Witty Art opens at Saturday February 8th!

(scroll below for the English version of this text):

GEEN onderdeel van Art Rotterdam, WEL zo leuk voor alle vrienden, fans en volgers van mijn Witty Art:

Graag nodig ik jullie hierbij uit voor de opening van een kleine maar fijne solo showcase van Witty Art:

‘’It’s A Wander-Ful World’’

Zaterdag 8 februari a.s. om 16.00u
Inloop vanaf 15.00 uur

Locatie is de intieme en o zo gezellige huiskamer van Het Nieuwe Westen: De Woonkamer van de Burgemeester, aan de Burgemeester Meineszstraat 102 Rotterdam.

De Woonkamer serveert een kleine borrel, er zijn wat hapjes en natuurlijk ben ik er zelf ook. En er is vooral heel veel Witty Art te zien!

Over deze expositie:
‘It’s A Wander-Ful World’ bevat werk van mijn hand uit de periode 2013 – heden: Varierend van eerder vertoond werk, zelden gezien werk en zelf gloedjenieuw werk waarvan de inkt nauwelijks nog droog is. Ok, bij wijze van spreken, dan.

De expo ‘It’s A Wander-Ful World’ kent ook een primeur: vanaf 8 februari komen er ook (digitale) Witty Art Prints in de verkoop, zowel in limited edition als on demand.

Bereikbaarheid:
De Woonkamer van de Burgemeester is makkelijk bereikbaar met tramlijnen 21, 23 en 24 halte Vierambachtsstraat: je stapt uit, steekt over, even dranklokaal De Burgemeester passeren aan je linkerhand en je wandelt rechtstreeks de Burgemeester Meineszlaan in. Links aanhouden en je komt vanzelf bij nummer 102 uit.

Ook buslijnen 38 (halte Burgemeester Meineszplein) en 44 (halte Vierambachtstraat/hoek Heemraadssingel) stoppen vlakbij.

Met dank aan de Woonkamer van de Burgemeester voor het ter beschikking stellen van de ruimte aan lokale kunstenaars zoals ikzelf en het sponsoren van de drankjes; en in het bijzonder aan Hans de Heus voor al zijn ondersteuning in deze!

(english version below this picture)

 

NO part of ART Rotterdam, BUT indeed a great opportunity for all you friend, fans and followers of Witty Art out there:

I’m happy to invite you to the opening of a small but ever so great solo showcase of my Witty Art:

‘’It’s A Wander-Ful World’’

Saturday February 8th at 16.00hrs
Doors open at 15.00hrs

Location is the quaint and cosy neighborhood living room called De Woonkamer van de Burgemeester - which literally translates into: The Mayor's Living Room, located at Burgemeester Meineszlaan 102 Rotterdam.

De Woonkamer will serve some drinks, there will be some nibbles and ofcourse, I will be around! And, ofcourse, there will be LOTS of Witty Art to be seen!

About the exhibition:
‘It’s a Wander-Ful World’ will show a selection of my work throughout the years 2013 – up till now. It’ll range from previously shown work, seldomly shown work and even brandnew drawings, the ink barely dry! Well ok, as a matter of speaking, that is.

This expo‘It’s A Wander-Ful World’ will also see the launch of digital Witty Art Prints, which will be available from Saturday February 8th (both in limited editon as well as ‘on demand’ – more details to be unveiled at the opening!)

How to get there:

All three tramlines 21, 23 and 24, stop Vierambachtsstraat. Cross the street, pass local bar De Burgemeester on your left side and you find yourself in the Burgemeester Meineszlaan. Keep walking straight ahead and you'll bump into De Woonkamer.

Both buslines 38 (stop Burgemeester Meinezsplein) and 44 (stop Vierambachtsstraat/Heemraadssingel) will get you there as well.

A major thank you to De Woonkamer van de Burgemeester for so generously opening up their livingroom to local artists such as myself and for sponsoring the drinks; especially Hans de Heus for all his support!

Brandnew Witty Art at a brandnew exhibition at the Marriott Hotel Rotterdam!

Photo: Yvonne Ottervanger

An artist's life often resembles that of a rollercoaster, well, mine certainly is. As my Open Studio Weekend went out of the window because I became unexpectedly and horridly ill with the flu, a new opportunity arose when I was offered the opportunity to join the latest Fresh Expo by Bubble Art Projects at the Rotterdam Marriott Hotel.

An excellent opportunity to showcase brandnew Witty Art, from a brandnew series: ''Something Fishy Going Wrong (Part 1) | Jellyfish Don't Play By The Rules!'. I will share more details of and a bit of background behind this series in a later blog.

So, last Saturday July 8th I found myself in the lobby of the Marriott Hotel in my hometown Rotterdam, in the company of seven other extremely gifted female artists, ready to get our artwork exhibited. Together, it didn't take us long to get our works up on the walls, after which each of us was given some time to talk a bit about our work. It was really interesting to hear more about each artwork, how they came to be and in what way the artists were driven to create their work. 

When it was my turn, I told a bit about myself, about my work as an artist/illustrator and, overall, visual storyteller and how I like to visualize the world that lives in my head: The World of Witty Art and all its inhabitants, the outcasts, the sole soul survivors, the perfectly imperfect misfits that are so dear to my heart. And we spoke about the symbolism behind the jellyfish - but, as said, more on that in a later blog.

(photo: Yvonne Ottervanger)

Then, it was time for an extended three course lunch together, during which we exchanged more thoughts and ideas about our artwork, art in general and experiences as professional artists. Connections were established and even some plans for future collaborations were made!

It was a very well spent and inspirtational afternoon and I can safely say that for me, I will definitely exhibit my work through Bubble Projects again, as it was a very satisfying experience and well organised event.



 
The Fresh Summer Expo at the Rotterdam Marriott, Weena 686 Rotterdam, can be seen up and untill with Friday August 30th and shows a very diverse range of original artwork by Grace Wychowanska, Julia Maximova, Izabella Verhagen, Yvonne Ottervanger, Rita Camphuijsen, Dinie van Buuren and Christy de Witt.

So, if you happen to be around the coming weeks, send me a message and who knows, we can meet up over a cup of coffee at the Marriot Rotterdam and I can show you the exhibition in person!

(c) All photos on this blog by Christy de Witt unless mentioned otherwise

New Witty Art Expo opening soon at Maak-Rotterdam for Dit Is Uit De Kunst!

Another new exhibtion for Witty Art coming up soon! As of February 8th, a small showcase of my work will be on display during the next edition of Dit Is Uit de Kunst at Maak Rotterdam, a creative store and coffeecorner/lunchroom located at the Mathenesserweg here in Rotterdam-West.

Dit Is Uit De Kunst is a local initiative run by artist/illustrator Nikki Smits who organises and programmes visual artists and musicians from the Delfshaven area at Maak Rotterdam. The Dutch expression ''Dit is uit de kunst'' in Dutch means ''This is really awesome''  and the pun ofcourse lies in the literal translation of the Dutch word ''kunst'' which means ''art''.

So, for this quaint and cosy creative store, I've chosen a selection of my series ''Minor Kitchen Sink Dramas'' and also decided to create some new ones to add to it. Also, I will showcase a couple of smaller Witty Art Originals and while this selection may not be the most edgy of my artwork, as a whole I think it'll contain quite a nice sample of my talents and skills as an artist.

Expect more previews and updates soon! Also, consider yourselves invited (for those of you who are around) to join for the opening, because it's gonna fun. There will be live music as well, brought to you by the talented singer-songwriter Katía; and Maak-Rotterdam will also serve a homemade meal for only € 5,-. You can find all info on the nice poster below, designed by Nikki Smits herself. 

Witty Art to be seen in Theater Rotterdam Schouwburg as part of The Museum of Dogs!

Ok, now it's finally official! Behind the scenes, Team Dogparade010 has been working really hard on a new project and it's gonna be a real highlight for me, both as part of the team as well as an artist: The Museum of Dogs, a co-production by Dogparade010 and Theater Rotterdam.

This pop-up Museum of Dogs will open its doors in the main hall of Theater Rotterdam Schouwburg, showcasing a range of dog-themed artwork by both professional, amateur and outsider artists from Rotterdam. Some well-known, some relatively known, some completey unknown to the mainstream audience. Amongst them, yours truly - and I am indeed very proud to be part of this exhibition, which basically is a collection of ''all things dog'' in the line of ''The Museum of Everything''. All works will be shown ''French Salon Style'', creating what we have named The Wall of Dogs. 

Simultaneously, we will show a collection of dogphotography, again by both professionals and amateurs as well as special photoselections provided by the Dutch Fotomuseum Rotterdam (about 100 year photography of dogs and humans) and the Belasting & Douanemuseum Rotterdam ((featuring dog with jobs like snifferdogs and therapydogs). This Digital Wall of Dogs will be shown on the lifesize Mediawand (basically the biggest TV-screen in the country) in the Hal of Theater Rotterdam.

You can find all information on the flyer, which again is a creation from Dogparade010's trusted designer Grootzus.

All this because of the rerun of the popular Theater Rotterdam familyshow ''Woef Side Story'', a musical about streetdog Toto and upperclass dog Marina who fall in love together, with a whole LOT of consequences, but in the end, love wins. Romeo and Julia go doggystyle, so to speak.  It's, ofcourse an adaption of the famous musical ''West Side Story'', but with dog characters in the lead and Dutch versions of the music score originally written by Leonard Bernstein.

Well, if this is not something look forward to, whether you are a doglover or not, I don't know what is.

The official opening of The Museum of Dogs is on Tuesday December 19th at 17.00 hrs and after that, the museum will open daily from 11.00 to 23.00 hrs, all the way through Christmas up and untill with the final closer at January 6th, 2018: the one-day mini festival We Love Dogs.

So, what exactly am I going to show for this special exhibit then? Well, that will be revealed in another blogpost, SOON. 

Preparing for a small showcase of Witty Art during Kadefestival Delfshaven!

Currently, I am busy preparing a small showcase of Witty Art for the upcoming Open Day at our own creative studio Studio PuRRR. We were given the opportunity of opening up our studio as part of the programma of Kadefestival Delfshaven (an initiave by our partner Schiezicht), this coming Sunday August 27th! So, both my creative partner The House of Westenwind (costume designer and professional cook) and I are currently getting our studio ready for showcasing a (small) selection of our work and our creative skills and hopefully, that day some people will pay a visit to our space at the Spangesekade,which is also the very location of the festival. 

Do you happen to be around Rotterdam coming Sunday? You are more than welcome, admission to the festival is free of charge and there is lots of other great stuff to see, including a small artist market, lots of musical and theatre performances, creative workshops and lots of tasty food, all of this made and catered to you by local makers from Delfshaven!

Witty Art has left Ani & Haakien after a well recevied one-month soloshow

 
Today was the very last day of my solo showcase at Hostel Ani & Haakien. A selection of Witty Art had been on the wall since the opening on September 15th and after just over a month, it was time to pick up my work and make way for new art selected by Pica Pica 010. 

Also, it's time to take the two 'Lost Bears' I sold during the opening, to their happy new homes, as I know their arrival is eagerly awaited for by their new owners. More of that, soon! 

I'd like to thank the following persons in particular: 
Ani & Haakien's Joyce Brouwer and Danielle Linscheer for their hospitality and kindness, as well as all other staff of absolutely the cosiest hostel in town, and naturally, a special mention for Diva Suzy La Cubanita! 
Marcel Kamphuis from Pica Pica010 for organising it all! 
Alrizki Marino for making such a spontaneous video interview
All those who came by and had a look at my artwork, including all guests of Ani & Haakien whom I had the pleasure of meeting and exchaging thoughts on art, creativity and life. 

THANK YOU ALL!

 

Exhibition at private art gallery Lijnbaan 140 ends after almost 3 months!

 

On October 9th, private gallery Lijnbaan 140 The Hague organised a small, but quaint and cosy closer of the group exhibtion that had been on display throughout all Summer, from July 3rd. So, nearly a full 3 months later, it was time for one last gathering of the participating artists. And still, quite some people took the opportunity to go and visit the artshow and had a good look at the art displayed, including mine. Again, that made for some good conversations and some nice new contacts.

I would like to thank owner Ellen Tuyn for all the great work she put into organising the exhibition (while running her own AirBnB at the same venue at the same time), the other participating artists for sharing their work with mine and all visitors having come and seen all of our work and Witty Art in particular!

The good thing is, she decided to keep some Witty Art herself by giving one of my precious 'Lost Bears' a loving new home - which marked the beginning of what eventually will be The Lijnbaan 140 Art Collection. And knowing Ellen's taste for good art, this will no doubt grow out to be one collection you might want to see for yourself, one day!

A spontaneous video 'shoot' resulted in a really nice video of my Witty Art opening!

So, what's even more cool about the opening of my work last night at Ani & Haakien, is that one of the hostel guests actually turned out to be one extremely talented film maker (and much more than that), Alrizki Marino, who made a very nice & neat little video of moi-myself, in front of my work. The result is really, really cool - and I am really, really pleased with it!

Another video I made for Ani & Haakien. This time, it's @mizzwitty and her exhibit here at the hostel! #Rotterdam #AmStudio

A video posted by Alrizki Marino (@rmith) on Sep 15, 2016 at 2:21pm PDT

Great opening at Ani & Haakien last night!

What a great opening it was, yesterday at Hostel Ani & Haakien. Perhaps not that busy, mainly due to the hot weather, but a perfect setting for a nice and cosy summer opening. And the people who showed up were all extremely interested in my work, which resulted some really touching conversations about my work and even two brandnew pieces sold!

Unfortunatley, due to traffic delays, one of the singer-songwriters that was scheduled to perform, could not make it, but the very talented Maria-Josephine made more than up for that. And there is nothing wrong with listening to some striking songs brought to life in a nice hostelgarden during a hot summer night.

And then there were two people who took the opportunity of getting some Witty Art of their own. First, my good friend and acclaimed 'citycreator & hospitality expert Leon Keekstra aka De Stadsbemoeial; and then one of my favourite Rotterdam theatremakers and directors, Irene Siekman both purchased a piece from the series 'Lost Bear'. And ofcourse, they had to strike a pose next their new prized possessions, soon to be handed over to them once the exhibition is over.

Some more people have expressed interest in wanting to see the exhibition, while it still on, so I hope many of you will come to visit the loveliest and funkiest Hostel in Town: Ani & Haakien, located in one of Rotterdams finest areas, The Oude Westen (just a five minute walk away from Rotterdam Central Station). The exhibition is still on until October 19th and the good news is, the hostel is open 24/7 ...

Many thanks to:
Pica Pica 010 / Marcel Kamphuis for organising it all
Hostel Ani & Haakien / Joyce Brouwer & Danielle Linscheer for their hospitality and a special thanks to Miss Suzy La Cubanita for being the most glamorous hostel kitty EVAH!
Maria Josephine for performing
Deborah van de Beld for, well, being you & all your support
My dear feline friend Lord Westenwind for getting his fur everywhere!
All of you who showed up to share this moment with me, thank you for your support & the great conversations!

More than ready for the opening of Witty Art at Hostel Ani & Haakien!

Last couple of days, I have been working pretty hard to get everything ready for the upcoming opening of my expo at Hostel Ani & Haakien. Which actually is this very night, tonight. So, you can imagine there's is quite a bit of the so-called 'infamous creative stress' involved ;-)

Anyway, so far I am really happy with how this showcase of my work turned out, especially as it offers both the more cartoonlike side of my work as well as the more surrealistic part of Witty Art.

After long deliberation, I finally opted to show a little series I never really had the opportunity of sharing during an exhibition before: ''Pin Bear Wizard'', from 2013. Featuring yet another brave little bear who has indeed been dealt some pretty bad cards by Life. He is accompanied by a somewhat sinister ''ScapeGoat-ish'' character, of which not even I am quite sure whether he is the bad guy or not. And me being me, and Witty Art being Witty Art, I like to pretty much leave that one open...

But, as you can see clearly, the style of drawing for ''Pin Bear Wizard'' is much more cartoonlike and much more colourful than the other work I selected for the exhbition. Series like ''Lost Bear' but also The Singles are much more surreal and dreamlike - though they all most definitely belong to the bizarre universe that Witty Art is made from.

All in all, I am really happy with how this selection highlights both sides of my work (and my world, for that matter). It's not that I favor one above the other, though I do like the how people sometimes have different perceptions of what Witty Art stands for. Is it cartoonart, figurative or even illustration art? Is is more autonomous, abstract even? 

Now, I am not one for labelling much, but sometimes doing so helps adding a bit of context. So, name or label it whatever you yourself feel like. Whatever feels good for you - and if you don't feel the need to name it anything at all, then that's just fine. All I am after, is that my work speaks to you and manages to strike a chord or two. That it evokes some kind of emotion. That it does not leaves you untouched. Whatever the emotion may be.

And, if does do anything for you at all, that is also fine by me. I just love for people to be honest with my work - as my work as about as brutally honest as I can get. In my work, there are no walls of social conventions to be upheld, no masks to hide behind, to pretence what so ever. It is what it is. And it is what I am. No more, no less. Just me, just Witty.