MARY A. WATERS

SCHILDERIJEN / PAINTINGS

OVER DE KUNSTENAAR / ABOUT THE ARTIST

Mary A Waters (London, 1957). Deze Ierse kunstenaar kreeg al op jonge leeftijd interesse in de schilderkunst uit de Gouden Eeuw. Ze volgde een opleiding aan het College of Art Limerick en studeerde hier in 1981 af. Tot 1990 deed ze onderzoek naar 16e- eeuwse Venetiaanse en 17e-eeuwse Nederlandse schilderkunst. Waters schildert enkel- en dubbelportretten en stillevens met olieverf op linnen. Haar werk is te zien geweest op gerenommeerde kunstbeurzen en is opgenomen in diverse internationale collecties.

Artist statement ( by Mary A. Waters )

" All of the source images for my work are taken from European (mainly Italian Dutch, Spanish and English)
painting from the 14thto the 19thcentury. These images are seen by most of the western world as embodying the best in us. They are iconic and unquestioned.
 
Coming from Ireland, a country with a long history of colonization and its aftermath, I see another side of this imagery. In Ireland, these Paintings were not seen as our cultural heritage in the same way they would have been by the English, Dutch or Germans. They carried a message of unattainable superiority and lasting authority, culturally and politically. 

This tension, for me is profoundly interesting and I have been exploring it in my work for many years. I have to stress that I do not look at the images in a sequential, analytical or academic way; I am not an Art historian. I can only describe my study of them as instinctive visually led. Looking at these images I have concluded that they frequently reflect the character of a culture more in their aesthetic than in their content. The values or desires of a society are often allowed only subliminal expression. It seems that for most of us, we can only examine ourselves obliquely. "

COLLECTIES / COLLECTIONS

Museum Het Prinsenhof Delft NL, Museum MORE, Gorssel, NL, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (embassies) NL, Rijksgebouwendienst NL (office of public works), Religious Art Museum Uden NL, International private collections

KUNSTBEURZEN / ART FAIRS

Art Bodensee - DE, Art Dubai - , Art Rotterdam - NL, Kunstrai Amsterdam - NL, YIA Art Fair Pairs - FR, YIA Art Fair Brussels - BE, YIA Art Fair Maastricht - NL, Art Miami - USA, Zona Maco - MX, Rotterdam Contemporary - NL, PAN Amsterdam - NL, Pulse Miami - USA, Art Stage Singapore - SG, Art Karlsruhe - DE, Arte Fiera Bologna - ES, Art Amsterdam - NL, The Solo Project Basel - CH, TEFAF - NL, Art Brussels - BE 

PUBLICATIES / PUBLICATIONS

Eating the Image, ISBN 9789079372034, Pels & Kemper Publishers

OPLEIDING / EDUCATION