July Japan Fukuoka
In December 2019 Ellen got in touch with me about the Silent muse project. When I heard about it for the first time, I was a little bit confused because it made me feel as if the drawings were flying from country to country. Normally we go to a museum or gallery to see art. I never expected art coming to my house this way. It is a controversial idea, a very good and unique one. To me it was a new adventure and I was happy to be chosenfor this travel.
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I would be afraid to offer art in this way in case something would happen to it. I wondered about the trust given to the unknown people in the travel.
The package was a kind of surprising gift to me. About where to place the drawing, it was not an easy task. I am renting a small place and wasn’t sure about the strength of the walls so I decided to put it on a frame. This way I could move it and place it anywhere. Sometimes I turned the abstract drawing to see it in different ways. I thought I might find something new. When I looked at it carefully I was surprised how many hours were spent on it. I considered the artist, how much patience was needed to make this art. It must have required a lot of persistence.
I work from 9 a.m. and get home at 6 p.m. Sometimes I forgot about the art being in the room. I watched your work when I went to bed and woke up. It gave me a kind of relief and calmness. A good time to think about myself. When I looked at the drawing I forgot everything about my daily life. The artwork emptied my mind. A similar feeling to which Zen Buddhism gives, a feeling of meditation and calmness. My imagination expanded. The drawing could be like a cosmos or something else, it depended on my mood. It was very intimate with many options for interpretation.
I am curious how the Russian and American people have responded to the art travel, because their cultures are very different. I wish all materials of this project would come together and we can watch the complete result in photo’s and responses.
This project gave me a fresh opportunity to be in touch with art. Some people buy copies of famous artworks, but a copy is a copy. I never thought art would be in my house in this way, a wonderful opportunity. I can feel more connected to the artist this way.
I am curious what will happen when the artworks are returned to the artist. How Dutch people and other artists respond to the project.
An artwork can give the same companionship as a pet in your house. When your pet dies you need to cry. With this drawing it is kind of the same for me. I don’t need to watch it the whole day to experience this friendship with the drawing. I really enjoyed the drawing and now need to say goodbye. She will be sent on to the next beholder but I would like to keep it. I will definitely miss her ‘The silent muse’ when she is gone.
I admire the persistence, concentration and passion from the artist to achieve this project. I congratulate her with this project.
July USA Albuquerque
We spoke about the project long ago, I didn’t really give it much thought, then it really happened, it got here! Now I can say, okay this is a huge project, the undertaking is so impressive and getting this gift was overwhelming.
When the package arrived, at first I was a little bit paranoid, especially as it came so delicately and precisely wrapped, as if there was a single egg inside. It felt like such a big responsibility. I loved that your art was wrapped in a beautiful leather case. It was smaller than I thought it would be and I loved the compact nature of it. I was very curious how this piece of art had been created. The repetition of lines, it is easy to get lost in it and I wonder if you started with the longer lines filling in with small minute lines or if you started first with the miniscule lines. This process reminded me of how a mosaic could be created from the outside in or inside out. I love the way the drawing is framed. It is clean and unlike anything else we have in our home.
We placed Silent Muse in the dining room, a big open space next to the window where you can see the sun setting. This way, we could live with your image easily accessible instead of having to view it from another room.
We have a lot of art work with big colors in the house. The black and white feels tranquil. When you step away from the art, the different tones of grey become clear. You keep coming back to see it, ponder it. The lines can look like coming in or going out. Some moments of the day it speaks differently to me than others. Is it sunrise or sunset? The sunset is part of my everyday language. If it had been hanging on another wall the drawing might have spoken differently to me.
I wonder if other people saw the same image. I really enjoyed it.
Because of the place we chose to hang it, I took more time to look and examine it than I normally would. We get used to the objects and art we have around us.
I was intrigued by the steady nature of the lines, did she use a machine? You, the artist I imagine, need to be meditative when creating this. I wonder if you are drawn to solitude for this laser focused kind of art. You know when you look at it, it is a visual and imaginative creation. There is also something about its boundaries, it is very controlled, the creativity is
rigid in some way. I like to view it because it is very contained. There were moments I felt like there were three pieces of art in one.
I don’t know how you logistically and so meticulously planned for this art to travel. It must have been challenging and frustrating sometimes in ways you didn’t know would be a challenge.
The journey of your art also confirms to me how good humanity is and how trusting we are. At the end of the day most people do the right thing. Art is such a big gift and I felt so protective when this piece came, it is irreplaceable.
The fact other countries are involved magnifies the admiration and the wonder of how you did this.
It is interesting to contemplate about people you don’t know, who share this art travel
history,and have a common experience with. The intimacy feels special, like when you look at
the moon and in another place someone else is seeing the same exact moon. It is a human