Tag Archives: creativity

The Ink Oracle

Girl Playing with Ink and Foxes (Watercolour 6 ink on paper, 20x20cm by Imke Rust)

It is a blessing to be versatile and enjoy working in so many different mediums, styles, sizes, themes and approaches.

Yes, neither you nor me are drunk, I DID repeat that three times.

I need to remind myself (and the world out there) about that. Too often, I get frustrated with the challenge of trying to explain who I am and present myself to galleries or other people who are used to people specialising in one thing. People love the simplicity of boxes, into which you have to fit nicely and which can easily be understood and stored…

And I understand…

I will never forget meeting the ‘plastic wrap artist’ in Beijing in 2008. He showed me several really thick catalogs of his work. All he painted was super-realistic renditions of people wrapped in see-through plastic. That simple. Nothing else.

Even if I do not remember his name, I will always remember what he does and if ever I need a painting of a person wrapped in plastic, I will know exactly whom to ask. That is the beauty of specialisation. And it is real easy and great for marketing and selling your art.

Every time I make art and do something different, I get extraordinary excited.
Every time I fall madly in love with the new work, the style, the medium and the subject matter. But, no matter how successful the work or how much fun I am having, I could never imagine doing thousands of those same different-similar works for the rest of my life. Or even for the rest of the year, or month…

You might have noticed that I have changed my ‘job-description’ from political artist to environmental artist to painter to conceptual artist or a combination thereof. I have never been fully satisfied. I am or have been all of that, but never exclusively.

I am all of that… and so much more.

So my latest change is to this description: Multi-Passionate Creative Being. For now that seems to be the best short description I can find. Even if it is probably not as easy to understand as ‘The Plastic Wrap Artist’.

In celebration of my versatility I would like to share a small insight into one of my current explorations. The common denominator: working in a small square format and on paper. Mostly in inks and watercolours, but not limited to that.

What makes these works really exciting for me, is that I have promised myself to work as intuitively as I can, i.e. paint the first thing that comes to mind and then just continue with what the artwork dictates. It is kind of like a dialog.

Wildly scary is the second aspect that I have challenged myself with: just draw or paint what I feel, without any judgement.

In other words: banning the inner critic. (Which feels like overthrowing the lifetime president…) And no labouring to get things to look ‘perfect’. Rather let them feel right and let them be.

Thank you for bearing with me and my ramblings and reading till here! Finally you can have a look at a selection of these latest works:

Holding Rhinos (Ink & watercolour on paper, 20x20cm by Imke Rust)

Shy Girl (Ink on paper, 20x20cm by Imke Rust)

Why Are We Not Wild? (Ink & watercolour on paper, 20x20cm by Imke Rust)

Giving & Taking (Ink & watercolour on paper, 20x20cm by Imke Rust)

The Horse is a Problem (Ink & watercolour on paper, 20x20cm by Imke Rust)

Untitled (Ink on paper, 20x20cm by Imke Rust)

Leopard (black & red) Ink & watercolour on paper, 20x20cm by Imke Rust

Leopard (black & red) (Ink on paper, 20x20cm by Imke Rust)

Winter in Berlin (Ink on paper, 20x20cm by Imke Rust)

Raven (Ink & watercolour on paper, 20x20cm by Imke Rust)

There is a kudu in my studio…

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Painting…

I have been quiet. I withdrew from the online world for a while, due to computer fatigue – I just needed to take a break. A break from reading, posting, searching, reacting and mostly from starring at a computer screen.

The decision to take a break was supported by the fact that I am back in Namibia, and realised how much I have missed just being out in nature. For the past few weeks I got so much joy and peace from just tending to my garden, watching all the different wild birds and small animals in it, consciously breathing the fresh air, soaking up the sun, slow down and basically just being.

During this time I also tied the knot with the most special and wonderful friend and partner. We had a beautiful celebration with a handful of selected family and friends in Swakopmund. A special time of love, family and friendship that deserved my undivided attention.

Happiness: Getting married to my love at the Atlantic coast.

But now I am happy to be back online and resume sharing my art and thoughts with you again…

My lovely husband and I have been at the Waterberg Wilderness Lodge for a few days, as he is producing an image video for them. During that time we saw a small herd of young kudus. They did not seem to mind us walking up really close to them.

While my man was filming, I just watched, taking some photographs and being grateful for this special experience. After a while I had the feeling that the one kudu cow wanted me to draw her portrait.

Excuse me… what?! I was confused. It can’t be… but I suddenly got a very specific impression about some parts of the painting, like the size and the composition and her insistence in the matter.

I was reluctant. I have often said I do not see the point in painting wildlife just for the sake of it. Isn’t it just too banal to paint a picture of a kudu? But she insisted, letting me know that there is a purpose. ‘Just trust me, I will guide you through it, once you get started…’ she seemed to say. And she did. (Or who or whatever placed those thoughts into my heart.)

What you see here is the almost finished work in my studio. I got some further specific directions while I was painting. Or was it just my creative mind? Anyway, hopefully I can soon follow up on them and let you know about the final work.

For now there is a kudu in my studio, watching me, with her kind and gentle eyes.

A kudu in my studio – to be continued…

Hotel Deco Busting: Gänseblümchen

2013 Hotel Deco Busting: Gänseblümchen A

Intervention Against Tasteless Wall Decorations in Hotels and Holiday Apartments.(Part 7)
Intervention gegen geschmacklose Wanddekoration in Hotelzimmern und Ferienwohnungen.(Teil 7)

Since 2010 I have secretly been slightly altering tasteless or boring hotel or holiday apartment art whenever I had the chance to.

: Gänseblümchen A (finished intervention)

Our bungalow on the island Poel in the Baltic ocean was small, but had a few typical holiday bungalow decoration gems on offer. The colourful ceramic plate was by far the most classy and valuable piece of ‘art’, but it was chipped on the side – probably the reason why it ended up as decoration in the bungalow.

: Gänseblümchen A (Original plate without intervention)

I decided that the alteration should be simple, easy to remove and just change the viewing experience slightly. I had some red tape and after some deliberation I decided a text element would be a great addition to the abstract and organic design of the plate. On the lawn in front of the building thousands of daisies started growing and I really like their German name: Gänseblümchen. The letters for the word were cut out from the 1cm broad tape and stuck to the plate.

: Gänseblümchen A (Detail)

Gänseblümchen A
Coloured sticky tape on found porcelain plate in a holiday bungalow on the island Poel.
approximately 45cm in diameter
July 2013

Work in progress

Disclaimer: It has become a habit of mine, to subtly alter and improve the decoration in hotels and holiday appartments when I have the opportunity. I do this with respect to the owners and future guests. I do not intend any harm and hope that it will put a smile on people’s faces who notice.

To see other similar projects, click HERE.

Domestic Sculpture in Blue (or how to avoid doing the washing)

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Do you also regard domestic work as a nuissance and a waste-of-time, but realise that it unforunately is a necessary evil? I do. 😦

Sometimes I try to cheer myself up, by pretending it is all a creative and fun adventure. And this is the result of that happening the other day when I was supposed to do the washing:

Domestic Sculpture in Blue (or how to avoid doing the washing)

Wishing you a wonderful and creative week ahead!

Film production almost completed

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An Inifinte Scream – The Documentary: Trailer

How did you make this? Where do you get all your ideas? Why are you working with salt? And what is a Tokoloshe Trap?

Did you ever wonder about these things when you see my art? Well, this time you are lucky and soon you will get some answers.

Documenting SubRosa IRust (c)

We have made a documentary film about my latest land art project ‘…and I sensed and infinite scream passing through the Namib’. It gives you a great behind-the-scene glimpse into the project and an insight how I work and think.

You can join me in the exciting journey from the making of the artworks, the thoughts behind them, the challenges along the way and finally the exhibition. It is a personal portrait as much as a film about the art and its role in society.

Until we can finally publicly release the film, you can already view the trailer and check out the film’s webpage. It will give you a taste of what to expect in the full documentary once it is released. Do not forget to sign up for the blog to find out when and where it will be screened. (I will also keep you updated here.)

A great thank you, to filmmaker and my partner Steffen Holzkamp for the excellent work and the super-cool film. I am really looking forward to sharing the full film with everybody soon.

Click HERE to view the trailer (1:36min)

Making of the Salt Circles © Imke Rust

Making the barbed wire stems for the roses © Imke Rust

Pimping a framed calendar photo

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Intervention Against Tasteless Wall Decorations in Hotels and Holiday Apartments.(Part 5)

The Great Bather Detail View ©ImkeRust

Cutting out a landscape photo from a calendar and framing it in a cheap frame seems to be a general habit all over the world. Do people really think that is cool? Ok, it is cheap and at least usually calendar photos usually show an average pretty landscape. But still, as my art lecturer would say: “Why, Larry? Why?”

Our bungalow on the island Poel in the Baltic ocean was small, but had a few typical holiday bungalow decoration gems on offer. This faded landscape of the area was one of it and in urgent need of improvement.

Found calendar photo or the BEFORE pic

I decided to pimp the calendar image with some ‘real’ painting and a view which looks slightly more exciting and challenging. On the previous day I photographed an old man going for a swim in the shallow water and decided to add him to the idyllic island landscape.

AFTER: The Great Bather final pic ©ImkeRust

While painting, I had all kinds of ideas for the title, envisioning the man to be a mythical, cow eating giant responsible for the mysterious disappearance of the cows. Or a ghost who only appears at certain times in the water and stares at the cows before submerging in the sea again. Or just the friendly village eldest who has been going for a swim every day without fail for the past 28 years….

But I guess I leave the stories for the viewers who will hopefully notice something strange in this picture and start wondering.

Making of The Great Bather ©ImkeRust

The Great Bather back on the wall©ImkeRust

Did you like this? You can view more similar actions on my webpage under Interventions. I will be posting future deco busting actions on my blog, so be sure to sign up to receive notifications of updates via email. 🙂

Intervention Against Tasteless Wall Decorations in Hotels and Holiday Apartments.(Part 2)

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In a previous blog post (A Confession) I have confessed to my urge to improve boring or ugly wall decorations in hotels or holiday apartments. Today I am sharing another similar intervention with you, before I am leaving for a short holiday at the Baltic Sea. And who knows, maybe our bungalow there is also in need of some artistic intervention? If so, you will find out about it on my blog – so, if you have not already done it, subscribe to my blog to receive notifications when I post something new.

Intervention Against Tasteless Wall Decorations in Hotels and Holiday Apartments.(Part 2)
Intervention gegen geschmacklose Wanddekoration in Hotelzimmern und Ferienwohnungen.(Teil 2)

Background: Since 2010 I have secretly been slightly altering tasteless or boring hotel or holiday apartment art whenever I had the chance to.

Title: Appearance of a Woman

Date: July 2012, Location: a holiday apartment somewhere in Vítkovice, Czech Republic.
Medium: Acrylic and pen on found decorative print on wood

: The ‘Before’ picture of a commercial flower print as found in the holiday apartment

The holiday apartment had two exactly the same decorative commercial art prints in the bedrooms. How thoughtless and boring is that? With apologies to the original artist, I thought at least one should be more exciting than just flowers and squares. So this is how it looks now:

: Altered artwork

: Busy with letting the woman appear on the flower print.

: View of the room with the altered artwork

: Explanation and apology text which I have added to the back of the work – just in case somebody thinks of looking there.

Text added by me on the back of the artwork:

Congratulations!

You have noticed that this decoration is not your average horror experience of cheap so-called art prints, but a more stimulating and interesting mutation thereof. Such bad and soulless pictures cause an allergic reaction with me, which manifests in colours, lines and picturesque alterations.

I hope you can understand and forgive me and that you can find joy and a fresh curiosity and appreciation for true creativity and real thought-provoking , interesting and exciting original art.

Yours sincerely, Imke Rust

You Are Wonderful

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We are living in on the top floor of a multistory building, which means we are often using the elevator and spend the longest time in it. Just like the building, the elevator is neither pretty, nor very welcoming. I guess, in general elevators are usually not the nicest places.

Often on my way up or down, I am thinking of how the elevator is actually like a life-vein of the building, moving tenants and their guests up and down. And it is a central, small space which almost all occupants share and use on a regular basis. It is a pity that it is so bland and uninspiring.

Inside view of our elevator, once you enter

I decided to change that…

The door is busy closing…

The door is completely closed, revealing the full message

Du (ja – DU!) bist wunderbar! ( You (yes- YOU) are wonderful! )

As usual I made sure that my intervention is not permanent or damaging somebody else’s property and it can easily be removed 😉

A temporary intervention in a public space by Imke Rust.
Digital print on photo paper and sticky tape.

Frozen Easter Eggs

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If you can’t beat them, join them…

I guess that applies to the weather too. If you cannot beat the cold – play along.

So that is what I did for Easter. As I already mentioned in my previous Easter post, I am not really into the whole Easter thing and much to some people’s despair I only ever follow rituals or parts of them, which seem like real fun to me, when I am in the mood for it or if they make some other kind of sense to me (and that does not always need to be the rational kind of sense 😉 ) .

Since we were invited for an Easter dinner and I recently read something about freezing water in balloons, I decided to create some frozen Easter eggs, suitable as an ephemeral gift for the host’s garden and the icy cold weather.

The Process

I filled water into balloons and hung them in the freezer. After the water was frozen, I peeled off the balloon.

Now I boiled some beetroot peels (the rest of the root was turned into a yummy raw salad) to get a natural and environmentally friendly colour for the red egg. Only at this stage I remembered to take photographs of the process. I used commercial food colouring for the other two eggs as I ran out of time for being more creative in making my own colours.

Boiled beetroot peels create a lovely red colour…

…which I used to paint the frozen ice/egg

The eggs were stored in the freezer and then transported in a padded cool-box to our dinner hosts.

Easter eggs stored safely in the freezer

The Result:

Then the Easter bunny (i.e. me) could not decide, where to place the eggs, to get the best visibility – these eggs were not made for hiding after all. After trying the pretty white snow blanket of the back yard, I decided it is best to place them right in view of the front door, even if there was not an ‘all white’ dense snow covering as I had wished for.But they would be in plain view of everybody leaving or entering the house.

The Easter eggs in their full glory

Easter Eggs viewed from the top

Much to my joy, they were well received…. 🙂 And we were treated to a delicious meal and lovely evening.

The bunny left some frozen Easter eggs at the front door…

And if they have not melted, they might still be there today…

Wishing you a great remainder of the week!

Calling the Sun

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After a brief appearance in Berlin the sun and warmth have disappeared again, making way for cold winter temperatures and a thick layer of snow.

So this is my official call for the sun to return. And my goldfish once again helped me with the task, by reminding the universe of the shape, colour and fun the sun can bring.

And since my family and friends back in Namibia are still desperately waiting for the rain, I thought I just send over a some clouds which I have collected some time ago (knowing that they might be in demand soon 😉 ). And I have asked them to take along all the clouds from Berlin and other rainy friends which they encounter along their way. Common clouds – the party is happening down in Namibia, so get yourselves over there in a hurry!