This was my first encounter with your work. I tried to look at the works with a fresh eye, but was unprepared for what I saw. The first impression I had was that it bore some links to the German painting traditions, especially to the Neue Wilder of the s and German Expressionism of the early 20 th century.
These movements aggressively questioned the status quo of the times. Their manly approach almost did not leave room for vulnerability, failure and fragility. In contrast, I see a lot of these features in your work.
Do you see your practice as a continuation of the movements, which fills in art historical gaps? I try not to fill gaps in art historical movements. My decision to draw or paint is almost as old as I am; I started as a little child with huge fascination for the simplicity of what you call creation, like the evolution of a pen moving on a sheet of paper. Questioning the status quo of whatever time you live in is important and, often, the source of art-making I guess.
The personal as well as the political is intrinsic to my practice. Themes such as psychology, social class, gender, sexuality, the nature and procurement of food, everyday weather and digestion have a major impact on my work. In this context, I long for anti-achievement and impossibility. Yet, instead of portraying failure with reference to a concrete figure or a specific marginalized group, I let literal flaccid penises or carrots fly through my pictures.
What is being measured and can it be measured at all? What is being ruled? What or who rules? Can you speak about the character of the Goddess in your work? I think I give the paintings a direction through the title of an exhibition or work. I think both the themes of dominion and measurement bring up questions of relation, between the individual and the collective, the powerful and the powerless.
