Doreen Wittenbols is a Dutch/Canadian painter currently working and exhibiting in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. She studied in Montreal and has been awarded numerous grants and fellowships over the course of her career. The works of Doreen Wittenbols are often shocking in ways that you didn’t think paintings could be. With heartbreaking humanity, a little girl’s curiosity, and equal parts humour and rage, she trains her eye on sex and gender, holes and mirrors, traditions and transitions, and transforms everything she sees.
What do you do all day?
This varies because I have periods when I do not paint/produce and instead work on admin stuff: applying for grants/exhibitions etc. In any case, I get up around 9 or 10ish, clean the house a bit and then either work on the computer or paint.
What are you going to do today?
I got down on my knees and painted a sealer/primer on the concrete floor of my apartment. Prior to this I prepped the floor for painting and vacuumed every nook and cranny once my girlfriend tore out the existing panels of wood. We also had a funeral for a litter of baby mice found under these floor boards. My week ahead will consist of renovations…just found a studio space that requires a lot of work before I can get back into it.
What’s your working process?
When it comes to painting I’m much more productive in 4-5 hour spurts as opposed to full days. In the past I would be working on several canvases simultaneously, due to working with oils. The most exciting thing for me is starting a painting, because I work very fast in the beginning and then slow down significantly. This is where I can end up spending too much time with a work. So I’m trying to change this tedious aspect within my process and stick to one painting until it is done and then move on! I’m currently in the preliminary stages of a collaboration with another figurative painter which involves touring the cities we live in and making landscape studies. Quite a contrast to my other paintings! I’m really excited about having another avenue within my practice and the idea of losing control, especially in terms of working with someone else.
What’s the best thing about what you do?
Starting a new painting. Making your own work schedule.
And the worst thing?
Working in solitude. This is going to improve soon, with being part of an artist collective and working amongst a creative group of individuals in a studio space. I’ve done a few residencies here, but it’s been years since I’ve been able to work in such an environment. The collaboration with my friend will also help to alleviate this issue.
How did you get into it?
In high school I kept my options open by studying a bit of everything, trying out all academic fields. In my final year when one is supposed to figure out what and who to be career-wise for the rest one’s life I changed my mind several times. I considered, believe it or not, accounting, as well as psychology, teaching, maths and/or art. When I reached the point of pursuing art and also wanting to teach art, I had to make a choice between two different programs/institutions: art college or university (the latter would enable me to teach). I opted for art college because my high school art teacher insisted that I become an artist, and not an art teacher. He assured me I would never starve in Canada.
What’s been the biggest achievement in your career so far?
If one’s “biggest achievement” is measured by sales, grants and awards, for me it would be graduating top of my class at art school, receiving the Governor General Award (Canada). Ultimately, I feel that my biggest achievement in my art practice is that I take risks, and I’m primarily talking about the content within my figurative paintings dealing with sexuality.
Where do you go from here, career-wise?
Almost two years ago I relocated to my birth country, the Netherlands, to situate my practice in a European context. In Canada, I exhibited primarily at non-profit or public galleries. I never felt I was ready for commercial representation of my work until now. So I’m seeking the right dealer/gallery to disseminate my work. I’m also looking at other forms of disseminating my work, such as prints or postcards of my paintings.
Any advice for someone trying to get into painting?
You never make what you pay into it. Accept your style and always challenge yourself. It can be a struggle, and it’s not a “romantic” life.
When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
My first career aspiration — this was in first grade — was to be a stewardess.
And if you were going to have a complete career change, what would you go for?
Airline attendant. No! Realistically, I’d be an accountant for artists, or just an accountant who buys a lot of art.
Where do you look for inspiration?
In the recent past. Primarily: true love stories or relationships, the complexities of sexual desire. Currently – pin ups & parks
Which other artists do you look [up] to?
Freud, Bacon, Velasquez, Balthus, Manet, Richard Attila Lukacs, Natalka Husar, Marlene Dumas, Eric Fischl.
What constitutes a successful work, for you?
Taking risks. Creating a painting that poses more questions than it does answers, when you can’t stop looking, and your eye keeps moving throughout the piece.
